Eyes Burning Scarlet
by Hikari.AA
Summary: After the Kuruta Clan massacre, Hitomi takes the 287th Hunter Exam to get the eyes of her people back. Easy? Yeah, right... Well, just put some reckless older brother, a greedy old man, a puppy boy and a kitty brat in the mix. Now, think about it again... Based on the 1999 anime until Chimera Ant arc. Killua/OC (Slow romance)
1. Storm x Duel x To the Hunter Exam

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Storm x Duel x To the Hunter Exam**

"There won't be kids there, you know," the boy told the little girl.

She shrugged and put the fork again in her mouth, tasting the meat. It was delicious.

"And also, you'll be the only girl here," he added.

"Not that I care, but I won't be the only girl," she said, taking another sip of juice, after placing it back empty in the table. "I'm positive about it."

The blonde boy gave her a confusing look, before sighing. Meanwhile, the girl asked for another glass of juice.

"Also, it will be dangerous..." he murmured. She gave him a long look before rolling her eyes.

"Just give up, Blondie," she shook her head. "I will go, no matter what you say."

Her face then broke with a huge grin when she saw the man with her juice.

"Here you-!" he was about to say, "Oh!"

That was when she saw what the man was surprised about. Walking slowly and close to 'Blondie's' hand, was a huge spider.

"A poisonous spider!" he shouted.

The girl frowned, looking at the boy. _"Oh, please. Don't look at it..."_

"Hey, don't move!" the man shouted. "If you move, it will get you!"

However, the boy glanced at the spider and his eyes turned red. In a flash he grabbed his fork and threw it along the spider.

As if nothing happened, he started to eat again.

The girl shook her head in embarrassment and released a long sigh.

"W-What?" the worker murmured in shock.

She laughed, nervously, holding her empty plate.

"S-Seconds!" she sweatdropped, before looking at 'Blondie'. "And another fork, please..."

* * *

The battle cries of a couple of people were annoying the hell out of her and she couldn't nearly listen the music of her earphones. She rolled her violet eyes and took a tuft of her long blonde hair out of her face.

In the end, the loser got thrown off the ship. She didn't really care.

The little girl sighed, leaning in a wall. She put her hands again in the pockets of her lilac hoodie.

"Didn't I told you?" the person beside her said. "You're the only girl here."

"What do you mean?" she said, taking off her white earphones in order to hear him better. "I'm not."

"Huh?" he asked, confused.

"You're here, with me, big sis."

He stayed thinking about it for a while, before realizing what she had said. His eyebrow twitched, feeling annoyed.

"Oh, you were a boy? Sorry, big brother," Hitomi said, teasing him. "Hey, you can't blame me. Kurapika is a pretty name, but for females."

"It's not," he murmured, a little annoyed. "It's a boy's name."

"Yeah, right," she said, joking. "Sorry again."

"Hey, you..." Kurapika said, still feeling irritated, "You're trying to change the subject again, don't you?"

"Was that obvious?" she grinned.

Kurapika just sighed, giving up. He shook his head, smiling to himself a little bit.

Her sister was impossible.

"It's coming. A storm is coming," they suddenly heard.

Both of them looked up to the boy, who was as old as Hitomi.

The girl remembered that she, with her brother, had seen him before. He and the old man were late and arrived when the boat had sailed. Then, he had used the rod to jump inside the ship

"The air is getting moist and it's salty," he said. "The sea cranes are warning each other."

"Are you saying you can understand the birds?" the man laughed.

"Yup, but not completely," he said, innocently.

The siblings looked at each other, questionly.

"Son, when does it come?" the captain asked him.

"Considering the speed of this ship..." he started to think, "In two hours."

Hitomi looked at his brother, who was still interested in that boy.

"It seems we have such a horrible luck here, don't we?" she said.

"Yeah, kind of," Kurapika answered.

The girl plugged her earphones back on her ears once again, trying to space off a little for the next two hours.

 _"What a hassle,"_ she thought.

* * *

"Shameful," the captain said once he entered into the cabin, looking at the examinees. "And you all intend to take the Hunter Exam?"

Then, he realized that there was a few people who was in a whole different state. Kurapika was sleeping quietly, and his sister was listening to music, leaning in a wall near him. The man was fixing his tie and the little boy was helping other examinee who were in a bad condition.

"You four, what are your names?" he said all of sudden.

"You want to know my name?!" the older man shouted, showing that he didn't want to do that.

On the other hand, the boy smiled brightly. "I'm Gon," he said, happily.

"Hitomi," the girl said, taking of her ear an earphone.

Her brother got up as well. "My name is Kurapika," he said.

"I..." the man said, as if it left a bad taste in his mouth. "I am Leorio!"

"Gon, Kurapika, Hitomi and Leorio..." he closed his eyes, like he was trying to record that names in his mind. He opened them again, giving them a serious look. "Why do you want to be Hunters?"

Hitomi flinched, she didn't expected such a question.

"Don't question us like that!" Leorio said, annoyed. "You're not even a interviewer."

"Just answer it."

"What the-?!"

"It's what my father does!" Gon answered, cutting Leorio off. "I want to see what it's like."

"Hey, wait your turn," Leorio told the boy. "I'm still talking to this old man."

Hitomi in the other hand just sighed, getting closer to the duo.

"What's the big deal?" Gon asked. "I just telling him the reason."

"I don't want to!" he shouted. "Look, I never do anything I don't want, even if it means fighting."

"I agree with you, Leorio." Kurapika said, stepping closer as well.

Hitomi rolled her eyes, seeing the discomfort that Leorio was having against her brother. Kurapika, in the other hand, didn't either notice or care about it.

"It's easy to avert and unwanted question by making up a believable story," he said. "However, I consider making a false statement is a most shameful action akin to greed."

"Call me 'Leorio-san'!" Leorio insisted.

"My reason for applying is too personal to tell someone I just met," he continued. "Therefore, I can't answer your question at this moment."

"Call me 'Leorio-san'!" Leorio repeated. "'Leorio-san'!"

For the first time, Kurapika glared at an angry Leorio. Gon looked them in amazement and Hitomi just shook her head. The captain looked at the girl, waiting for her to say something.

"I don't want to," she said, coldly.

The man sighed.

"Then, you three get off my ship immediately if you can't answer my question," he said, they all looked at him in surprise. "You still don't get it? The Hunter Exam has already begun. It started the moment you got on this ship."

He took off his pocket a card with the Hunter Association's logotype. All four of them looked it in a big surprise.

"I got it!" Hitomi suddenly said, surprised at her thought. "You have to choose who will take the exam, don't you?"

Kurapika understood her point immediately, but the other two just looked at her questionably.

"What do you mean?" Gon asked her.

"There are hoards of people who wants the Hunter License, so I can deduce that the proctors don't have all that time to examine all these people," she said, before looking at the man. "Therefore, they hired you to screen the applicants. Am I wrong?"

The captain smirked.

"You are really intelligent, little miss," he said.

"Geez, I have no choice then. I guess I have to answer," Leorio sighed. "The reason I want to be a Hunter is-"

"Hitomi and I are the only two survivors of the Kuruta Clan," Kurapika cut Leorio off.

"Hey, let me talk!"

However, they all ignored him. Hitomi looked at her feet, not wanting to talk about their situation.

"I want to be a Blacklist Hunter to capture convicts who have bounties on their heads," the boy continued.

"The reason of that?" the man asked.

"Four years ago, all of our clan were massacred by a gang of thieves, Genei Ryodan," Kurapika continued. "I am determined to capture them. For that reason."

"All members of the Genei Ryodan are on the most wanted list. Even the most experienced Hunter hesitates," he said. "You may end up dying in vain."

"I'm not afraid of dying. The worst fear I have is that my anger will fade away."

Hitomi sighed. She had given up trying to deal with his brother to not get revenge. He had already chosen the worst path anyone could ever taken... the avenger one.

"And you?" the man inquired, looking at the girl.

"I'm not that obsessed to revenge like that emo over there," she said, pointing at Kurapika with her thumb. "However, I'm interested in finding the eyes from our people."

"Eyes?"

"Yeah, all of their eyes were taken by them," she told them, hiding the fact that their were the Scarlet Eyes. "I feel that they will be able to rest in peace if I collect them all."

Leorio just looked at the two of them.

"If you two want that, you don't have to be Hunters!" he said.

"Are you an idiot, aren't you?" the girl said, raising an eyebrow.

"There are places and information that only Hunters are allowed to access to and actions you are allowed to take only as a Hunter, Leorio," Kurapika said.

"I told you to call me 'Leorio-san'!" he shouted.

"Well then, what's your motive, Leorio-san?" the captain asked.

Hitomi smirked, teasingly.

"Yeah, yeah! Let's hear your heartbreaking reason!" she said. "I will try to not to cry when I listen to it."

Leorio smirked as well. "I won't answer your question just to impress you. So, I'll tell you honestly..." they were all curious. "Money!"

Hitomi facepalmed, really _hard_.

 _"I want to cry... in another way..."_ she thought.

"I'll be a Hunter, and I'll make lots of money!" he exclaimed. "If I have money, I can get anything! A huge mansion, a great car, expensive liquor, even women!"

"You can't buy class, Leorio." Kurapika said.

And you could say that Leorio was really pissed off right now.

"This is the third time," Leorio told him. "Let's go outside. I guess the dirty Kuruta Clan's man doesn't know about courtesy."

Hitomi didn't like that in the slighlest, but remained silent and bit her lip.

"Take back your words, Leorio!" Kurapika exclaimed, angry.

"Remember, it's 'Leorio-san'," he said. "Come!"

"With pleasure!"

They started to walk away, not caring about the conversation they were all having.

"Wait, I'm not through with you yet!" the man shouted.

"Brother!" the girl tried to stop Kurapika. "That idiot..."

She was about to run in order to stop them, when she heard:

"Leave them alone," Gon told her. "'If you want to know someone, know what makes them angry'. I like those words that Mito-san taught me."

Hitomi looked at him, raising an eyebrow in wonder. "You mean I don't know my own brother with that?" she asked.

"W-Well... is not what I mean," he stuttered, nervously, before grinning. "It's just that... they could know each other better!"

She sighed, before starting to poke his forehead at the point of hurting him. "Is there something in your head, or you are that simple?"

She stopped, and Gon pouted, putting both hands in the place where she had touched him.

"That hurts!" he complained.

"Come on! That made you feel pain?" she said, sighing, "How old are you? Six?"

"I'm twelve!" he said, before grinning widely.

She eyed him for a couple of seconds and broke her serious face with a smirk.

"Well, me too," she said.

The captain smirked too at the sight of the two children.

 _"They are too young,"_ he thought, _"But, also, they seem to have a great potential."_

"Whatever, I'm going," she said. "I don't want my only brother and that old man to fall in the sea or something."

"Me too!" Gon exclaimed.

With that, Gon, Hitomi and the captain started running.

* * *

The three of them arrived, just to find that Leorio and Kurapika standing and glaring at each other.

"If you take back your words, I'll forgive you, Leorio!" Kurapika shouted, holding his weapons tightly.

"You do it first, Kurapika!" Leorio said back, browsing a pair of swords. "I have no intention of yielding!"

They jumped, clashing in the air. Hitomi sighed, at the stupidity of both boys.

Then, she noticed something else. A huge lightning hit the mast of the ship and a sailor, who was trying to fix it, lost his grip and began to fall down right into the ocean above him.

"Kazto!" the captain shouted.

Both of the kids reacted quickly, starting to run towards him and jumping. Gon caught Kazto, and Hitomi caught the boy. She grabbed herself into the ship in order to not fall down.

But her grip slipped because of the rain.

 _"Damn it!"_ she thought.

Hitomi was shocked, she didn't feel the cold water as she expected. Instead, a warm hand was getting a hold of her leg. She looked up to see Kurapika holding her and Leorio grabbing his leg. They were all hanging all in each other, like a chain.

"Th-Thank you..." Kazto said, still surprised. "You saved my life."

"Thank us once we are all safe," Hitomi said.

Then a huge wave of water hit them, wetting them more than they already were.

That was just great.

* * *

"What the hell were you thinking, idiot?!" Kurapika shouted to her sister. "That was the most stupid thing I've ever seen someone doing in my entire life!"

"Come on..." she said, rubbing one of her ears. "I'll get deaf if you keep shouting like that..."

"I'm serious, Hitomi!"

"Hey, hey..." Gon said, trying to calm him down. "Why don't-?"

Kurapika furiously turned to him.

"You too!" he snapped, "That was reckless!"

"That's true!" Leorio added. "If we didn't grab you two, you both would have been goners too!"

"But you caught us," the boy said, happily. "Right, Hitomi?"

That question took the girl by surprise, making her blink at the boy in confusion.

"Umm... yeah," she said, unsure of what to say.

The older boys looked at him, as amazed as her. After a while Hitomi smirked, before crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"By the way, are you both agreeing with each other? That pretty amazing," she commented. "Weren't you two fighting minutes ago?"

"Ah, right," Leorio said. "We were doing that."

"Let me apologize for my rude action, Leorio-san," Kurapika apologized.

"Hey, don't be so square. You can call me Leorio, Kurapika. Let me apologize too," Leorio said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I take back everything I said about your people."

"Well... that's a little out of character, but..." Hitomi was about to said.

But she just smiled. Then, they heard a laugh behind them and turned around to see the captain. He was looking at them.

"The four of you have passed the trial!" he told them.

They all jumped in their spot.

"Are you serious?" Leorio said, with a smile on his face.

"Yeah, I'll take you to Dole Island."

"But, can this scrap make it without sinking?" he insisted.

"Trust this ship!"

"You better not be wrong," Hitomi told him. "If I have to swim all the way I will hit you."

He just laughed again.

* * *

They got out the ship, just to see a lot of people there

"What a crowd!" Leorio said, staring at it.

"Most of them are probably here for the same purpose," Kurapika said.

"They are Hunter applicants from all over the world," Hitomi said. "That means that finding the exam won't be easy either."

Leorio started to look around. "Let's see now... Transportation to Zaban City is...?"

"Hey, did you even listen to me?" the girl's eyebrow twitched. "I said it won't be that easy!"

"Let him be," Kurapika sighed, shaking his head. "He's helpless."

Then they heard Gon talking to the captain.

"Captain, thank you for everything. I had a lot of fun."

"Well said, Gon. The stormy journey was 'fun', wasn't it?" he said and started to laugh. "But you only reached Dole Harbour. You still have a long, difficult ways to go."

"Yup, I know," Gon said bowing slightly.

Leorio started to walk towards them. "If you are lecturing us, no thanks," he said. "You gave us plenty of that during the sail."

"Then I'll give you one last piece of advice. It's a special tip."

The captain said and pointed at a tree that could be seen from where they stood.

"Look. Head for lone cedar. That's one of the shortcuts to get to the Exam Hall. If you got that, be on your way," then the captain walked to the ship. "The Exam has already begun."

"Well, take care!" Gon spoke, happily.

"Yeah. Same to you all."

* * *

That's the end of the first chapter.

I would like to clear up that English is not my first language, so there could be some grammar or spelling mistakes in my writting. I'm sorry.

Well, I hope you liked it! See you!


	2. Doki Doki x Lie and Truth x Kiriko!

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Doki Doki x Lie and Truth x Kiriko!**

"But it's strange..." Leorio said, looking at the map.

"If you mean why the Hunter Association is taking hundreds of contestants in a bus... you are right." Hitomi said.

"It's not that!" he said, annoyed. "Zaban City, the site of the Exam, is located in the opposite direction from the mountain were the lone cedar is."

"That's true," Kurapika admitted.

"We could end up going there in vain," he said.

"Or we could just go by bus, get hit by a train and die." Hitomi said, with a flat voice.

"Can you be a little bit more optimistic here?" he said, irritated again. "You are too pessimistic."

"I'm not pessimistic, I'm _realistic_ ," she replied.

"I can ensure that the bus is really heading for Zaban," a voice behind them. "The bus stop is right over there."

They turned around to see a man. He had orange hair and black eyes.

"I'm Matthew," he said. "I'm a rookie applicant, just like you. Nice to meet you."

He extended his hand to Gon.

"I'm Gon," he said, shaking it. "It's my pleasure."

He did the same to Kurapika, who just looked at him expressionless. He smiled nervously, before directing to the little girl. She raised an eyebrow.

"It's _not_ my pleasure." she said, deadpan.

He looked at her, speechless.

"Don't mind about them both. They are a bit strange," Leorio said, in a friendly manner. "I'm Leorio," he put a hand on his shoulder. "Say, Matthew-san, are you going to take the bus too?"

"Unfortunately, I get sick riding on a bus," he said. "Besides, I've already decided to head for the mountain with the lone cedar."

"Then we're going the same way, aren't we?" Gon said.

"Oh, what a coincidence!" he exclaimed. "I was looking for a companion too. Let's go together, Gon."

 _"That was far too obvious..."_ Hitomi thought. _"It's too cliché."_

"Yeah!" the boy nodded, happily.

 _"That was obvious too... in a way."_ she sweatdropped. _"He's too simple-minded."_

With that, they both started to walk away.

"You'd better learn to doubt people!" Leorio shouted.

"The same I think, Leorio," Hitomi sighed. "You trust way too much in that bus..."

The siblings looked at each other and nodded, starting to walk towards Gon and Matthew.

"So long!" he said, turning around.

"Try to not fall in a trap!" Hitomi said, waving her hand briefly.

* * *

"Does your leg still hurt, Matthew-san?" Gon asked Matthew, as he carried him in his back.

"Yeah, it seems like I sprained my ankle walking on an unfamiliar mountain path," he said. "I'm sorry, Gon."

Hitomi sighed. "Your ankle will be what hurt you less once I hit you, liar bastard..." she murmured.

"Calm down, Hitomi," Kurapika said.

"I'm doing a huge effort for not hitting him, trust me."

"Then, try harder."

Suddenly, Gon stopped.

"That's right!" he exclaimed, before putting Matthew on the floor. "Wait here a minute, Matthew-san."

"What's the matter, Gon?" he asked.

"There could be medicinal herbs in the mountain!" he said, eagerly. "I'll look for some!"

"Wait!"

With that, he started running.

"We can't waste time doing that..." he murmured.

"If you are in a hurry, why don't you go ahead by yourself?" Kurapika made him a fake smile.

"Huh?"

"See you later," Hitomi smiled at him, in the same way.

They walked away, leaving a confused Matthew all alone.

After a while, the girl spoke.

"Do you think that Gon will be okay?" Hitomi asked. "I don't trust that man a bit."

"I think he will just do it fine," he said. "But... Gon is a little too gullible, isn't he?"

"Man, that Matthew is really annoying!" she shouted, punching hard at a tree.

You could say that her luck was just terrible. The tree shook violently, making an apple fall from it. It, however, hit something.

A sleeping rhino.

It wake up and stood up, looking at them.

"You had to hit that tree, hadn't you?!" Kurapika shouted, annoyed.

"It's not my fault!"

They jumped, on time to avoid the furious animal. It ran and found something else, a man shouting. They got there, just to see it was Matthew.

"Isn't that great?" she smirked. "It will kill him and he'll be gone!"

"Shut up."

Matthew took a pair of wooden swords, putting a fight. Kurapika took his pair of katanas and stepped closer. Hitomi browsed two silver daggers as well.

"Put that thing away!" Kurapika said. Matthew turned around and noticed both of them.

"You can't even use it properly, can you?" Hitomi added.

Then, Gon stepped of the bushes and walked towards the wild animal.

"Gon!" Kurapika yelled. "It's too agitated. We have no other choice."

"It just became nervous because we entered its territory," he said.

 _"Or because an apple hit its head on its sleep, more likely..."_ Hitomi sweatdropped.

His hand got closer, in order to calm the rhino. But, before Gon could even touch it, a suitcase hit its head.

Neither of them could say anything.

"Good timing, Leorio," Hitomi said, with a monotone voice.

The rhino got angrier than before and started to chase Leorio.

 _"Being hit on its head two times in a whole minute... poor creature."_

* * *

"Don't tell me? There was a trap in the bus?" Hitomi teased, looking at Leorio, who was standing on the highest branch of a tree. "I could have _never_ tell."

"Shut up! It's not that!" he shouted. "I thought you might be missing me. You know the saying, 'when you travel, take a friend'," Leorio started to laugh. "So please, Gon, send that rhino _away_!"

Minutes later, Gon was waving at the rhino and Leorio had gotten off the tree.

"How long are we going to waste time here?" Matthew said. "Someone may have gone ahead and beat us to it by now. If we didn't dally here like I warned you, we could have avoided this danger."

"But it turned out to be nice," Gon said. "We were able to meet-up Leorio."

"Also, you leg seem to be much better," Hitomi added.

Matthew flinched.

"I'm glad for you, Matthew-san." Kurapika fake-smiled him again.

* * *

The five of them stood in a desolate city, with no signs of someone living there.

"What an eerie place!" Leorio noted. "There's no one around here."

"But there are many people, right?" Gon said.

"Why?" he said, surprised. "How can you notice?"

"How can you _not_ notice?" Hitomi said, jokingly, "It's pretty obvious, don't you think?"

"Can't you hear breathing sounds all around us?" Kurapika asked him.

"Yup, and the rustling of clothes..." Gon added.

Leorio kept quiet for a while, trying to hear something. However, he gave up quickly.

"Unfortunately, I am an ordinary man," he said.

Suddenly, Gon smiled. He started to run and stopped in front of an alley.

"I found you, Grandma!" he said.

They got closer, just to see an old lady with a cane on her hand.

"H-Hey," Matthew called them.

They turned around, just to see a lot of cloaked people. They had masks that hid their faces and repeated 'doki, doki' again and again.

"'Doki, doki, doki, doki'?! Who the hell are they?!" Leorio said. A vein popped up in his forehead in annoyment. "Hey, Matthew. Are you sure we're on the right path?"

"Yeah, I'm positive," he replied. "But if you want to take a different route, I won't stop you."

"Fine, I'll do that," Leorio said, turning around. "I'm fed up with these stupid tramps! That bus was bad enough!"

"Hold on, Leorio," Kurapika said. "Just like Matthew says, this is the right path."

"That's true," Hitomi said. "The other paths were full of signs that warn about beast and magical monsters."

"In order to avoid that, we headed for that lone cedar and it led us to this town," Gon concluded.

"Then who the hell are they?!" Leorio shouted.

Hitomi just looked at the lady. She took a step closer to them.

"Listen. You're heading for the lone cedar, aren't you?" she said. "You can never get there unless you go through this town. Other paths are like a maze. Moreover, there are violent beast and monsters lying in wait."

Gon gasped, before pointing at a logo in her cane.

"It's the same mark the captain had!" Gon exclaimed.

"So this is also part of it," Kurapika said. "We have to go through to take the Hunter Exam."

Then, all the people in white started to murmur again that 'doki' thing. The four of them looked at the lady, cluelessly.

"And now, here's a heart stopping quiz!" the woman shouted, all of sudden.

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched.

 _"Creepy lady, indeed..."_ she thought.

"I will give you one question." she explained. "You are allowed five seconds to answer. If you give a wrong answer, you will be disqualified. You must answer by choosing either 1 or 2. All other answers will be incorrect."

"Hey, wait a minute," Leorio said. "You're giving us one question for all five of us?"

"That will be quicker, won't it?" she said.

"But if they give a wrong answer, I'll fail too!" he complained, pointing at the other four.

"That's impossible," Kurapika raised an eyebrow. "I'd say the possibility of the opposite is extremely high. It makes me sick."

"The thought of it almost brings me to tears," Hitomi sighed, in annoyment.

"But it means if one of us knows the answer, we're all safe!" Gon said, happily. "Besides, I'm not good at quizzes."

However, Matthew took a step forward.

"No thanks for me." he said. "Let me try first."

Hitomi rolled her eyes. _"Far too obvious..."_

"Oh, I suppose you are quite confident," the old lady said. "I guess you can try."

"Good, it's decided," he said, before glancing at the others. "I'm sorry, but I can't risk failing by taking the quiz with you guys.

"Matthew-san?" Gon asked, surprised by his actions.

"Sorry, but I never had any interest in becoming your pals," he said. "I just needed you to reach this town safely. I have no business with you anymore. I'm quite good at using my brain."

"What did you-?!" Leorio shouted.

"Wait, Leorio," Hitomi said, smirking. "I think we have to see how great is the intelligence he is babbling about."

"Also, hearing the question in advance will give us a hint too," Kurapika said.

Matthew grinned. "Let's do it quickly, Granny!" he said.

"Here's the question," she said. "Both your mother and your girlfriend are captured by bad guys. You can only save one person. 1: Your mother, 2: Your girlfriend. Which will you save?"

Even Matthew looked shocked. The question was beyond of normal.

Hitomi furrowed her eyebrows. "What the...?" she murmured.

 _"Is she serious?"_ Kurapika thought. _"There's no legitimate answer to such a question."_

"1!" Matthew answered after a couple of seconds.

"What made you think that?" the lady said.

"You know, you only have one mother in the world," he said. "But you can always find a girlfriend."

"Well, no with that face of yours," Hitomi commented, in a monotone voice. He glared at her, and she stuck her tongue at him.

The old lady and all the masked people started whispering, discussing his answer with each other. After a while, she turned around and all the people moved out the way.

"You can go."

With that, the man started to run smirking.

"Don't kid with us!" Leorio shouted. "This quiz is outrageous! Even if he saved his girlfriend, can you be absolutely sure that he made a mistake, huh, Granny?! There can't be a correct answer to such a stupid question! Or are you saying we have to pick an answer to please you?!" he turned around. "I'm going back and taking another route!"

"It's too late. If you do not take this quiz, you'll be disqualified immediately," she said.

Then, something rang through the little girl's ears. She looked around, just to notice that she wasn't the only one. Kurapika and Gon had heard that too.

"Wait, Leorio!" she shouted.

"This quiz is..." Kurapika was going to say.

"Hold it!" the woman interrupted him. "I won't allow you to talk anymore."

They both clenched their teeth.

 _"Seems like that cat-eyed boy and the cute girl realized it..."_ the lady thought.

Hitomi sighed, before looking at Gon. She hoped that he, at least, had realized how that game worked too.

"Now, answer it," the woman said. "1: You take the quiz. 2: You don't take the quiz."

"1!" Kurapika answered quickly.

Hitomi glance at Leorio, who looked really pissed off.

 _"Come on!"_ he thought. _"It's a simple trick, realize it!"_

"Here's the question," she said. "Your son and your daughter are abducted. You can only take one back. 1: Daughter. 2: Son. Which do you choose?"

The three of them stayed in silence. Leorio, however, took a wooden lath. He was about to hit the old woman.

"You have got to be ready for this!" he shouted.

"Is that your answer?" she asked, smiling evilly.

"Damn you! Amusing yourself with such an outrageous quiz!" he said, "Who are you to say we can't be a Hunter if we can't answer the question? I've had enough!"

"Cold down your head a little, you moron," the girl said.

"Shut up, brat!" he shouted, trembling in anger. "I'm going to drag this hag as my gift and charge into the Exam Hall! And I'll bash all those patronizing proctors and teach them a lesson!"

"Are you going to ruin our right of passage?" Kurapika asked.

The trembling stopped.

"Huh?" his surprise seemed to calm him down a little.

"We've already passed the test," he said. "Silence was the right answer. Just like you said, there's no right answer."

"The rule is that we can only answer the question by saying either 1 or 2," Hitomi said, as a matter of fact. "So, we don't answer by staying silent."

"But Matthew went-!" Leorio was about to say.

"-into the wrong path," she completed, smirking.

"She didn't say 'correct'. She only said 'you can go'," Kurapika explained. "A minute ago, I heard his scream. Probably he was attacked by a beast or a magical animal."

Leorio looked confused. A pair of masked people opened a hidden door.

"That's correct. The right path is this one," the lady stated "It's a straight road. It takes about two hours to reach the top."

He was confused, but Leorio dropped the lath.

"Ma'am... I'm sorry," he said.

"You don't need to apologize to me, I'm doing this in order to meet someone like you," she smiled, "Work hard and be a good Hunter."

They faced the dark tunnel and started walking.

"You may go now," she said. "A couple living in the house underneath the lone cedar are the navigators. If they find you promising, they will guide you to the Exam Hall."

The door was closed again, leaving them in darkness.

After a few steps, Gon suddenly sighed.

"No! I can't find the answer," he said.

Leorio and Kurapika laughed at it. Hitomi just smirked.

"You are still thinking about it? You don't have to think about it anymore," Leorio said. "The quiz is over."

"I know that..." he said. "But, if we face a real situation in which we can only save on person out of two special people..."

Kurapika's and Leorio's eyes widened in understanding. However, Hitomi narrowed them, still thinking.

"I can think that was the sole purpose of the quiz. The Hunter's world is cruel and merciless, and maybe we could be in that situation in the future," Hitomi said. "Whatever we choose will not be right, but we must make a choice."

They looked at her, still walking. She shuddered.

"Well, we better not think about it anymore. Just, let's go."

* * *

"Two hours passed two hours ago!" Leorio complained. "I'm getting hungry. And I want to relieve myself, too."

"Nobody was interested in knowing that, thank you very much," Hitomi said, annoyed. "Do whatever you want but far away from me. We're leaving!"

"Let's take a break!" he said, tired.

"But the exit is right over there!" Gon yelled over his shoulder.

In a matter of seconds, Leorio started to run and passed by them. They all stood there, seeing that they were in a lake, for some reason.

"Do I have to swim?!" Leorio complained, once again.

"If you want to, go ahead," the girl said, climbing in a little boat that had just Gon found. "And let's just hope you drown..."

"Hitomi!" Kurapika scolded her.

"What?" she said. "I can hope."

Leorio just glared at her wanting to say something, but climbed in the boat as well. Gon and Kurapika started rowing, while Hitomi just put her hands behind her head, lazily and Leorio just looked to the water.

"Say, I've been thinking," Gon said after a while. "How do we impress the navigator? I have no idea."

"Well, we can-" Kurapika was about to said.

"I guess it's appearance," Leorio interrupted him. "I'm sorry to say this, Gon, but you have no chance. Kurapika, you're not tall enough! And, as for the brat, you're just a little girl. Taking that into account, I'm the only one among us who can impress the navigator."

The three of them looked at each other.

"It's that right?" Gon asked, innocently.

"Not a chance," Hitomi replied.

"After all, it takes more than just being physically strong," Kurapika said. "Something else like intelligence and shrewdness."

Leorio smirked, in a confident way.

"For me, it's my courage," he said, "I wouldn't get scared, no matter what monsters I encounter."

All of sudden, an enormous snake appeared behind Leorio. Gon, Kurapika and Hitomi looked at it, in surprise.

The girl smirked. "Hey, how about a little test?" she said.

"Huh?"

"Leorio... behind you." Kurapika warned him.

He looked behind himself and paled. He took both rows and rowed in such a high speed that made Hitomi grab herself in the seats.

"Leorio!" Kurapika called him.

They were already in the ground, far away from the monster.

"Yeah, you're _really_ brave," Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Congratulations."

* * *

 _"Beware the Beasts."_

"Hey, there's a sign." Leorio said, looking at the reading.

"Yeah, and it says the same as the other twenty we came across today," Hitomi sighed.

"Don't worry," Gon said. "There's no trace of magical animals."

The girl looked at him, but choose to don't say anything.

"Anyway, how can you see so well in this darkness?" Kurapika asked.

"My house was located deep in the mountain on Whale Island," he replied. "So, it was completely dark at night. But the atmosphere of the woods at night is totally different here."

After a while, they saw the cedar. Next to it, they could see a house made of wood. Leorio knocked, but they had no reply.

"It's strange that they are not here," Kurapika commented, "She said there was a couple living here."

"Can't we just break in?" Hitomi suggested.

Kurapika glared at her, she just shrugged.

"For once, she's right." Leorio admitted. "I'm coming in."

Their eyes widened when they saw what was in the house. They could see a tall animal, holding a woman in his arms. There was a man injured in the floor too.

Hitomi bought her daggers and, along the others, run towards it. The animal, a Kiriko, jumped. She was forced to jump as well in order to stay unscratched.

The Kiriko started to run and Gon started to chase it.

"Leorio, take care of the wounded!" Kurapika called. "Hitomi, protect them both!"

"Yeah, leave it to me!" Leorio shouted.

And then, Kurapika run away.

 _"Why do I have to do the most boring part?"_ she complained to herself.

* * *

"This will do for now," Leorio said, taking the needle off the navigator's arm. "But you need antibiotics for that wound. Isn't there any place where the Midoguda herb grows?"

"Yes, there's but..." he said. "It's kind of far and there might be magical animals around."

"How can I take the Hunter Exam if I'm afraid of magical animals?"

Hitomi, in the corner of the room, chuckled. The memory of Leorio yelling and rowing to escape from the magical animal a while ago prove him really brave.

"But..." the man's eyes were filled with tears. "My wife... my wife is-!"

Leorio's gaze softened.

"Don't worry. Gon and Kurapika went after her. They'll do fine," he said. "They'll return shortly."

Hitomi was surprised at this. She had never thought that Leorio could have a heart. She thought that the only thing he cared was money.

And, for once, he proved her wrong.

"Well, I'm going to get it." Leorio said. "Hey, brat, take care of him."

"You old man!" she said annoyed, glaring at Leorio until he closed the door.

She closed her eyes and sighed, before turning around to talk to the navigator...

But she was alone there. The man wasn't there.

Realization hit her hard.

"Damn it!" she growled. "Leorio!"

She stormed off the house in search for the man. She cursed herself, why did she be that careless? The man was a Kiriko, there wasn't doubt of it.

And Leorio was in trouble.

She then noticed something in the floor. There were bandages, just like the ones which Leorio had used in the man seconds ago.

That meant...

"This way," she murmured to herself.

It didn't take her too much to find the jumping Kiriko.

* * *

"What?" Leorio murmured, as he felt the rope in which he was hanging loose its grip.

He looked up to see a monster standing before him, a magical animal. A Kiriko.

It was about to let him fall down, but something grabbed the rope and bought the Kiriko down. Leorio saw the girl holding a dagger close to the beast neck, and quickly climbed.

"You were following me?" the Kiriko said, in surprise.

"What? You didn't notice me?" Hitomi just smirked. "I was a little troubled finding you, though."

He ran towards her, in order to help the girl who was struggling with the beast. His eyes widened when he saw something in his arm.

"So, the wounds were fake?" he said surprised, yet irritated.

"W-What are you talking about?!" it said.

"You're that husband in the house, aren't you?!" he yelled. "The needle mark in your right arm is a solid proof!"

"You can see that?!" Hitomi exclaimed, in surprise.

The Kiriko stopped struggling but started to laugh. He laugh really hard.

* * *

"Well now, as you've probably realized, we are the navigators," one of the Kiriko said.

"I'm the daughter," the woman said.

"I'm the son," the man said.

Gon waved his hand, saying 'hi' to them.

"As Kurapika-dono pointed out, this tattoo is a proof that I am sworn to God, his wife. Unless you are versed in ancient history, it's impossible to know this," the daughter showed them her tattoo. "It takes not only broad knowledge but keen eyes to spot it. We are very much impressed by your keen perception, it's worthy of admiration."

He just closed his eyes and keep quiet.

"As for Leorio-dono, although you didn't realize that deceptive wound, you treated the wound very efficiently. And most of all, you encouraged me while I acted as though I was worried about my wife," the son told him. "I am moved by your kind heart. Moreover, your insight in discovering my true identity from a faint needle mark. It is worthy of praise."

Leorio rubbed his neck, unsure of what to say.

"Also, as for Hitomi-dono. Even though you lost me, you managed to find and follow me. I didn't ever realize. Then, you caught me off guard and saved Leorio-dono," the man added. "Your tracking skills are incredible for such a little girl. Congratulations."

Hitomi looked at another way, in embarrassment.

"And Gon-dono, you kind shows up once in a decade, the kind who can distinguish us apart," the navigators said together.

"If I knew it, I would have hit you lighter," Gon said. "I'm sorry."

"All four of you have passed the test," he smiled. "Well, we shall lead you to the Hunter Exam Hall."

Kurapika and Leorio clashed their fists together. In the other hand, Gon just grinned at Hitomi, making her smirk at his action.

The four Kiriko started flying, carrying the other four along with them.

"I hate weights!" Leorio shouted. "Please, don't drop me!"

"Please, _drop_ him," Hitomi said, annoyed, "I beg you."

"Didn't you say you were a man with courage?" Kurapika teased.

* * *

I hope you all liked it

Thanks to **SlightlyYandereMelissa, Niomi Nicole287** and **SoulXHunter** for the review they left, it made me really happy! I'll do my best to continue writting even better than now :)

See you next time!


	3. The Exam x Killua x Sibling's Fight

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 3 : The Exam Starts x Meeting Killua x Sibling's Fight**

"I found it," the navigator told them. "That building is the Exam Hall."

All of them looked in amazement the huge building in front of them. The sight of it made them feel anxious and uneasy, at the same time.

"Hey, that's not it," the navigator said, making them all look at him. "The entrance is next door."

He pointed at a tiny restaurant, which looked like it would crumble at any second if you looked at it too much.

"It can't be..." Hitomi murmured.

But they entered anyway. The navigator got closer to the chef.

"Hey, Mister! A steak lunch," he said, smirking.

"How do you want it?" the man smirked as well.

"Over low heat... grilled slowly..."

"Okay, go to the back room."

Hitomi raised an eyebrow and looked at her brother, he shook his head.

It was so confusing.

They were taken to a room and they stood in there. Kiriko looked at them and smiled.

"This is the Hunter Exam. It always takes the applicants by surprise," he said. "They say there are several million applicants. And one in ten thousand is the probability of reaching the Exam Hall."

"Thanks for the encouragement," Hitomi sighed.

"Well, you all have done very well for rookies." Kiriko smiled to the girl, before looking at all of them."I will be happy to guide you again next year."

He threw a badge for each one. Hitomi caught it and read the number 406 there.

"Well, good luck, rookies."

Right after Kiriko closed the door, the whole room started to move. They didn't last long until they realized that it was going down, much like an elevator would do.

"But the way he said it was rude, wasn't it?" Leorio complained, after a while. "As though we had no chance of making it in this year..."

"One person in three years," Kurapika said. "That's the probability of a rookie passing. I hear many rookies drop out midway because the Hunter Exam is so harsh. And they take such a physical beating, they can never take it again."

"But why do they take such risks to become Hunters?" Gon asked, innocently.

The three of them gaped in disbelief, looking at the boy.

"You are taking risks _too_ , you know," Hitomi said. "Did you really come to take the Exam without any knowledge?"

"Well..." he sweated, nervously. "I don't know."

Hitomi facepalmed. She now could see it... Gon wasn't just a simple-minded boy... he was _really_ stupid too...

"Look, a Hunter is-" Kurapika began to say.

"In this world-" Leorio interrupted him.

"The most noble/well-paid occupation!" they yelled in unison.

Gon and Hitomi sweatdropped at the sight.

 _"You've awakened the beast..."_ she thought

"Not again, you goody-goody!" Leorio yelled.

"You greedy bastard!"

They both clenched their teeth, pressing their foreheads with each other. Both of them let out a growl escape from their lips.

"Gon! Listen carefully!" Leorio said, "Only official Hunters are issued Hunter Licenses. If you have one, you're permitted to go anywhere and you can use most public facilities free of charge. If you become a Treasure Hunter of lost antiquities or a Contract Hunter for a rich patron, you can make a fortune! You can have a great life!"

"That's wrong, Gon!" Kurapika yelled back. "A Hunter's job is to keep the order between people and nature! Like a Heritage Hunter and a Rare Animal Hunter, it's part of a Hunter's job to protect the priceless cultural heritage or an endangered species or to capture notorious criminals! You must have a sound mind, a sound body and strong discipline!"

Gon sweated nervously while Hitomi just took a pair of steps from them.

"What do you say, Gon?" Leorio asked.

"Which kind of Hunter do you aspire to?" Kurapika said.

"Well..." he stated. "It's hard to choose..."

Fortunately, the floor dropped down and interrupted the conversation. The door opened, revealing the countless applicants.

"There are so many people..." Gon commented.

"That's because with you there are 406 of us."

Quickly, everyone turned to see the person that had just spoken. He jumped and positioned in front of them.

"Hi! I'm Tonpa, number 16 this year," he said, in a friendly way.

He shook hands with Gon. Then he did the same with Kurapika and Leorio, however when he went to Hitomi, she just looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

Tonpa laughed nervously while Kurapika just shook his head.

"I've taken this test Hunter thirty-five times," he told them

"Really?" Gon said, excited

"Yeah, that just means I'm an expert at taking the exam-"

"It doesn't," Hitomi stepped in the conversation. "That just means you're an expert in _failing_ the exam.

Tonpa froze there, realizing what this girl had just said was true. However, he forced himself to make her a friendly smile.

Hitomi narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

"Help me!"

Everyone looked at the direction where a man appeared to be attacked by a blue-haired magician with cards in his hands.

"Damn, that dangerous guy is here again," Tonpa said. "Number 44, Hisoka the Magician. Last year, everyone thought he was sure to pass the Exam, but was expelled after nearly killing a proctor he didn't like. I must warn you to stay away from Hisoka."

"Can such a person be allowed to take the Exam again?" Leorio asked him.

"Yeah. For the Hunter Exam, proctors are changed every year. The proctors decide the contents of the Exam. If that proctor says 'pass', even a devil can pass the Exam."

Hitomi stared at the magician for a few seconds, narrowing her eyes.

 _"He looks more like a clown to me..."_ she thought.

She started to look around the room, looking for something to entertain herself.

She saw something that caught her eye. Alone, in the shadows, there was a boy staring at Gon, before directing his icy blue eyes at her. He had white hair and was holding a green skateboard under his arm.

And, the thing that surprised her, he looked like he was about her age.

All of sudden, a shrill ringing sound echoed in all the room, making her took her gaze off the boy. The participants turned to see a man who had lilac hair, black eyes and a little moustache.

Hitomi stared at him... he had no mouth.

 _"Creepy,"_ she thought.

"The call for the applicants is now closed. I announce the start of the Hunter Exam." he said. "Please, come this way."

He started to walk, motioning to them to follow him.

"Let me remind you. The Hunter Exam is extremely difficult, and if you are unlucky or incapable, you may get injured or even die," he warned, "Only those of you who don't mind that risk should follow."

Hitomi stared at the proctor and took a long breath, trying to relax herself. She looked at Kurapika, who smiled and started to follow him.

She smiled too. She had to do this.

For Pairo.

For her family.

For her beloved Kuruta Clan...

And for her brother too.

Determined, she started to walk, taking sound and unwavering steps.

"I'm Satotsu, the proctor of Phase One," he introduced himself. "I'm leading you to the test site for Phase Two."

* * *

After a while, it ended becoming an endurance test. All of them - except of Leorio - where running without problems. However, Hitomi was feeling really annoyed...

It was because that Tonpa guy.

Thirty minutes passed by, and Hitomi was feeling the urge to slap him. Despite of that, she was unable to do that for several reasons.

Her goody-goody brother was one of them. Also, on top of that, _everyone_ trusted him. They all thought that he was a kind and hard-working guy.

Oh, my god. That was _irritating._

"Say, Tonpa-san," Gon called over to him, "Since you've participated thirty-five times, you must know many people around here."

"Sort of," he said, before pointing to some candidates, "First, Number 103. The snake charmer, Barbon. He is vindictive. Next is Number 76. The martial artist, Cherry. In hand-to-hand combat, no one surpasses to him. Number 255. The wrestler, Todo. His really strong and is smart too. Numbers 197 through 199. The Amori brothers. By combining their efforts, they always get high scores. Number 384. The huntsman, Gereta. He can hunt any creature with a blow pipe and a club. He's very skilled... Well, those are the regulars I see."

Hitomi slightly scoffed at him, and Kurapika eyed her suspiciously. Taking advantage that Leorio and Gon were busy talking to Tonpa, he started to run slightly slower to her to catch up.

She glanced at him, with curiosity.

"You don't like Tonpa, do you?" he asked.

"Can you tell?" she replied, glancing blankly at the guy.

Kurapika released a long sigh, before shaking his head.

"Is there someone you like?" he said, irritated.

"It's not that. He's just too... too..." she stuttered, feeling annoyed at her lack of words, "too _kind._ "

"That's it?" he said, surprised. He snickered, "Well, you see, not everybody can be like you."

She sighed, annoyed.

"It's not that!" she exclaimed, "He smiled at me when I insulted him, it was way too fake. You know, every person usually wants to kill me five minutes after they met me. Ask Leorio if you don't believe me."

"I don't think that Gon wants to hit you."

"He's too simple. It's different," she said. "I can see that."

"How?"

"His eyes."

Kurapika raised an eyebrow at her.

"You're just making this stuff up," he chuckled.

"I'm not!" she exclaimed.

"You are."

She rolled her eyes in annoyment. There was no way to convince his brother, she was aware of that.

She speeded up, catching up with Gon. A couple of minutes later a boy passed by, skating.

He was the boy that Hitomi had seen before.

"Wow, that's so cool!" Gon exclaimed.

"Hey, you over there!" Leorio yelled. "That's unfair! Isn't that against the rule?!"

Gon, on the other hand, just said: "Hey, Who are you? How old are you?"

If the white-haired boy heard him, was a mystery. He just glared at Leorio, as if he was _annoyed_ at the sight of him.

 _"I know the feeling..."_ she thought.

"What's against the rule?" he spoke for first time.

"This is an endurance test!" Leorio replied.

Hitomi sighed.

"Will you ever learn when to shut up?" she said, "As far as I knew, the Hunter Exam didn't have a rule book."

"Yeah, also the proctor just said to follow," Gon added.

"Hey, you two, who's side are you on?" he asked, irritated.

"Not yours, of course," Hitomi replied in a deadpan tone.

"You-!"

"Don't yell! You'll run out of stamina! Besides, it's annoying," Kurapika exclaimed behind them, "Basically, we can bring anything we like the Exam."

Leorio growled, annoyed.

"You're a new face, aren't you?" Tonpa asked the kid, "I suppose you have many questions. If you like I can-"

This time Hitomi wasn't the only one to glare at him. The guy did that too, finally making Tonpa shut up.

 _"At least I'm not the only one who dislikes him."_

The boy turned to Gon. "You asked my name, didn't you?" he asked.

"Yup, but you don't have to answer if you don't want to," Gon said, happily. "I'm Gon, twelve years old!"

The boy seemed to thought about it for a second, before turning to the girl. "You?"

"Hitomi, twelve too," she answered briefly.

"Twelve years old, huh?" he looked like he was reconsidering these words. He flipped his skate in the air and grabbed it. Gon looked at him in amazement.

And the girl rolled her eyes.

"It seems that someone loves to get attention," she said, sarcastically.

He glared at her but didn't say anything else. He looked up at Leorio instead.

"Hey, old man. How old are you?" he asked.

"Huh?! I may not look like it, but I'm in my teens just like you!" he yelled, angry.

Everyone stayed quiet for a couple of seconds in amazement.

Hitomi broke the silence, starting to laugh hard.

"You gotta be kidding me! There's no way you are in your teens!" she teased. "Not with that old-looking face of yours!"

"You little-!" a vein popped out his head.

Then, he looked at Gon. His eyes were flew open in surprise for that sentence.

"No way!" he finally exclaimed.

"Huh? You too Gon? How rude!" he complained. "We're not friends anymore!"

* * *

"Leorio!" Gon shouted.

Hitomi stopped and looked behind her. Leorio was so tired that he couldn't handle the marathon anymore.

She ran towards him.

"Hey!" the boy called. "Are you guys dumb? He's done."

"That's not true!" Gon said. "Besides, I can't leave him. He's a friend."

At that word, the boy opened his eyes. Hitomi could say that the word was strange and meaningless for him...

Oh dear.

"A friend?" he murmured, unconsciously.

"Yes," Gon said, decisively. "A friend."

Leorio, on the other hand, forced himself to stand up again. Hitomi had to admit it though. That guy had a really strong and unwavering will.

"Damn it! I'll be a Hunter, no matter what!" he shouted, trying to run again. But, he didn't have the strength enough and stopped, supporting his body as well as he could. "Damn it! My legs won't move!"

Kurapika got closer to him. "It's not only for the money, is it?" he asked.

"Shut up! It's for money!" he yelled. "There's not another reason!"

"It's not the time to argue about that!" Gon said, before turning to Tonpa. "Tonpa-san, what should we do?"

Hitomi's eyebrow raised. Among all the people who was there, was he going to ask _him_ for advice?

"Oh, yeah... that smell!" Tonpa exclaimed. "At the fork... the sweet smell coming from the right tunnel! You may able to recover your stamina! It's the Healing Cedar Sap!"

He helped to get Leorio up, letting him use his shoulder for support.

"Healing Cedar Sap?" Gon repeated, in confusion.

"Yeah... the sap is used by Hunters who become exhausted in the woods," he said. "If you sniff that smell for a while, you can temporarily recover your stamina."

Hitomi glared at him. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion once again.

"Wait," Kurapika said. "What if it's a trap?"

"Certainly that's possible, but you can't just leave him here, right?" he said. "Flunking all time... Do you know why I've flunked thirty-five times? It's because I'm such a silly, kind hearted person."

"Yeah, right!" Hitomi finally said.

They all looked at her, in surprise. She took a deep breath and firmly glared a Tonpa.

"It's true, Leorio is going to fall into the trap... but you won't," she said. " _You_ are the trap."

"What?" he _pretended_ to be confused.

Kurapika took a step closer to her sister and looked at her.

"Hitomi, is enough," he scolded her. "I know you can be a little distrustful of people, but Tonpa had been helping us until now."

" _Until now_ , as you said," she repeated. "I assure you that fake kindness will be over once he gets away from here with Leorio."

"Hitomi."

She looked at Tonpa. Kurapika put a hand in his forehead, sighing to calm himself.

"And Leorio will die," he ignored her brother. "How can you prove us you are saying the truth?"

 _"Hitomi."_

"That's it. I'll go with you."

 **"HITOMI!"** Kurapika finally snapped.

She quickly glued her gaze in her brother's furious one. She was taken aback. She didn't remember the last time he had shouted at her like that.

They glared at each other for a few seconds.

"Don't worry Kurapika, I understand," Tonpa suddenly said, "We have known each other for about three hours and a half, so she would not trust me enough."

Hitomi glared at him coldly.

"Just, I want you to give me a chance," he said, "Please, just one chance to show you that you can trust me."

"As if," she hissed.

Tonpa smiled once again, she growled. That smile of his made her feel sick.

And the skater-boy stared at her with curiosity.

"Don't mind about me," Leorio spoke to them. "Go ahead!"

The two of them left and disappeared in darkness. Kurapika and Gon stayed there, looking at the tunnel blankly.

"What are you doing? Aren't you going?" the nameless boy asked, after a while.

"Oh, I'm sorry we made you wait," Gon replied. "You can go ahead. We're not going until Leorio comes back."

He didn't answer. He choose to stay quiet.

"Kurapika," Gon said. "I'm going back to see how they are."

"Let me go with you," he said, "we can always catch up later."

"I'm going with-" Hitomi was about to say.

"No," Kurapika said, almost instantly.

The girl stared at his closed eyes, in disbelief. Why was he saying something like that?

The nameless boy looked at Hitomi. Gon, instead looked at Kurapika, then to the girl and looked back to the boy.

"It can be dangerous," Kurapika explained. "You'll continue without us."

" _Dangerous,_ you say? I'm not a child, I can take care of myself, thank you very much," she said. He didn't reply. "Come on, I lived on my own for two years when I was looking for you. I thought that could prove something!"

"Still no."

"You never heard what I have to say!" she yelled, anger slowly consuming her.

She looked at her feet, clenching fists. She softly growled, before turning around and giving them her back.

"As you wish, I won't do anything," she said. "I don't care anymore. Die if you want, it's not my problem."

Kurapika's eyes opened for a moment, hurt by her cold words. However, he closed his eyes and turned around as well.

The white-haired boy looked at her, quietly. Gon did the same too, but he was sad by just looking at the siblings.

"But... Hitomi-" Gon started.

" _Bye,_ Gon," she interrupted him dryly.

Gon flinched, before sadly smiling.

"We'll be back. Then, I'll be happy if you tell me your name," he told the boy, and then he glanced at the girl's back. "And if Hitomi returns to her old self..."

She eyed him by the corner of her eye.

"Well, see you two later!" he waved, grinning.

Then, they left. She stayed there, for a couple of seconds, when the boy talked.

"What are you going to do?" he asked her.

"Nothing. If they don't want help, let them be," she said, "What about _you_?"

He just shrugged.

"They're interesting people. I think it will be a lame if any of them die, don't you think?"

"Whatever."

He smirked, before getting in his skateboard and entering on the dark tunnel.

"See you later!" he said.

Hitomi stood there. She was sure that she wasn't going there.

One second...

Two seconds...

Three seconds...

"Wait up!" she shouted, before running. It didn't last long until she caught up the boy, who looked at her, amused.

It was like he expected her to come.

"So you came?" he said, smirking.

"Even if I hate him, he is my brother," she quickly said. "Also, I will make him apologize to me."

The boy just smirked at her actions.

"You are pretty interesting yourself too," he said. "I'm Killua, by the way."

* * *

That's all for today.

 **To** **SoulXHunter and** **Mr. Kohen** **:** Thank you for reviewing! I'm glad to heard that you liked last chapter and I hope you lenjoyed this one as well.

See you next time!


	4. The Past x The Present x Becoming Insane

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 4: The Past x The Present x Becoming Insane**

They heard steps coming, and didn't last long until they realized that it was Tonpa. He stopped running at the sight of them and backed off.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Hitomi said, grinning.

"Why so scared?" Killua asked coldly, icy blue eyes looking at the man.

"I-I'm not." he stuttered.

"Take a look at yourself. You are awfully pale," she said, before covering her nose, "And take a bath, for goodness sake. You are sweating a lot."

"You must have tricked them." Killua said, serious.

"What?" he said, sweating. "Don't kid with me."

Then, both of them smiled in a scary and twisted way. It startled Tonpa a little bit, even if they were just a couple of little kids.

"Let me tell you something good." Killua said, skating close to him. "Those who use dirty tricks will someday die a dirty death."

She took a couple of steps closer to him.

"Want to find out right now?"

"At this very place?" Killua completed, doing the same.

Freaked out, he backed off before hitting the wall behind him. They looked at his frightened expression for a little. Killua smirked and Hitomi got even closer to him.

She leaned in order to invade his personal space and smirked as well.

"You are saved for now." She stepped back, "But don't go and provoke me, I'm not as good as my brother."

All color drained from Tonpa's face. Her eyes shone in a bright scarlet color, like the blood, making him froze in his spot.

Just _what_ was she?

"Let's go, Hitomi," Killua called her.

Her eyes turned violet again and pouted at him.

"You're such a fun killer," she complained, before waving to Tonpa. "See you later."

She started to run beside him, it didn't last long until Tonpa was out of their sight.

Hitomi smelled something sweet, _too sweet_ to the point to be disgusting. It even made the girl flinch when she sniffed it.

"By the way, I'm intelligent enough to know that something like the Healing Sedar Sap doesn't exist," she said, "But what the hell is that sweet-" She looked up to see Killua, but he began to slowly disappear. She stopped abruptly. "-smell?..."

Hitomi looked around, just to find nothing but darkness. She called Killua, but he didn't answer.

She tried to took a step forward, but she received a hard hit in her face instead. She put a hand in her sore forehead, realizing something.

She was locked in something she didn't knew what it was.

Just great.

Then, Hitomi heard something and her eyes snapped open. A shrill scream could be heard from outside and echoed in her ears, making her cover her ears in pain.

It stopped and she stood motionless there, she hit the door with her hands.

"Is someone out there?!" she yelled, "What happens?! Hey!"

No one answered. Irritated, she kicked the door and it surprisingly flew open. Slowly, she browsed her knife and started to walk cautiously.

All color drained from her face when she saw that. There was a brown-haired boy sprawled in the floor, lifeless. She looked at his face and resisted the urge to puke.

His eye sockets were all empty.

She kneeled down to him, eyes still open in full capacity. She knew who he was.

"Pairo..." she murmured.

Hitomi couldn't understand the situation at all, her mind was in blank. How could be that she was seeing something that she had lived four years ago?

It didn't make any sense.

Hitomi didn't feel like thinking straight anymore. She stood up and her feet moved in her own , dragging her downstairs.

There she found two more bodies, making her froze for a moment. Eyeless, there was the slaughtered bodies from both her parents.

She couldn't stand it anymore. She went out the house and ran through the dead-looking village that used to be her home.

Suddenly, she tripped into a body. She got up, just to see it...

Motionless and without eyes, was the bloody corpse of her brother.

Kurapika was dead as well.

"It can be..." she murmured, letting her tears escape from her red-colored eyes.

Then, she heard footsteps and turned around. Grinning at her, there was a huge and muscular man. He started to walk towards her.

Hitomi quickly stood up and started to run away.

 _"This can't be happening..."_ she thought. _"It must be a nightmare."_

Realization hit her, and for the first time in a while started to think straight. She stopped in her tracks.

It was a nightmare indeed, an illusion.

She faced the man, who was still walking towards her. Determination was now plastered in her violet eyes.

An idea crossed her mind, but it didn't meant that she liked one bit. She bit her lip in annoyment.

She _really_ needed to snap out of it.

"Killua, I know you are out there," she said, "I will say this just once in my life, so listen carefully."

She took a long and deep breath. She gritted her teeth and her fists clenched.

Oh, god. She was going to regret this.

 **"HIT ME!"** she cried at the top of her lungs.

Hitomi felt a huge wave of pain in her face and couldn't help but fell backwards and close her eyes. She slowly opened her them, just to see Killua again in front of her.

"Yo," he greeted, casually."Are you done daydreaming now?"

Her eyebrow twitched.

"You idiot. You were watching me when I was out and doing nothing?" she asked, irritated.

"What do you mean?" he asked, confused. "You spaced out for a second and then asked me for hitting you."

"What?" she asked, confused.

The girl was sure that she had been out for _hours_. She shook her head and started running again, Killua closely following her in his skateboard.

"But back then, your eyes were different," he said, she flinched. "They were red."

"Yeah," she admitted. "I'm a Kuruta."

"Kuruta, huh?" he repeated, in slight surprise. "I thought that guys were all dead."

"All of them but Kurapika and me," she bitterly chuckled. "A privilege, I guess."

Despite the fact that Hitomi was holding back, Killua could see sorrow in her voice. His curious mind asked him to ask more, but he didn't push her further.

After a long period of silence, Hitomi spoke.

"I was wanting to ask something... What is that sweet smell?"

"It's the Delusion Sedar Sap," he answered. "As you saw, it shows you the most hated memory you have again and again. It ends up destroying your mind," he looked at her, smirking. "Consider yourself lucky."

"Hn," she growled.

* * *

Once both boys found a deliring red-eyed Kurapika, Killua kicked him straight on his face and he fell on the ground.

She ran towards him into his aid. He looked at her, his blue eyes glistering in confusion.

"Hitomi?" he asked in recognition.

"You still can recognize your sister," she placed a hand in her heart, in fake happiness, "How touching."

Despite of acting happiness, she was indeed relieved. Her only brother seemed to be in the right state of his mind.

"Kurapika!" Gon shouted, running up at him. "I'm glad you finally snapped out of it." Then, he looked at her and the boy, in surprise.

"There's no such a sap as 'healing cedar'," Killua explained. "This is the Desillusion Cedar Sap that the assassins have been using for a long time. It shows the illusion of the past that a person dreads most and destroys his mind."

"Then, Tonpa..." Kurapika said.

"I told you so," Hitomi muttered. Kurapika clenched his teeth in frustration, realizing the problem they had gotten themselves into.

"We have to go!" Gon said.

"There's a way to save the old man and catch up to the leaders in one shot," Killua told them

Gon grinned at him. "I'm glad that we meet again," he said. "Will you tell me your name?"

He looked at him and smiled.

"Killua," he replied.

Then, he took something from his pocket and showed it to them.

Hitomi eyed those little things, curious. She raised an eyebrow. "Since when normal people carry bombs around?" she asked.

"I never said I was normal."

"Good point," she said, as Killua moved his arm and throw the bombs.

 ** _BANG!_**

Flames from the explosion blurred Hitomi's sight but, as the others did, jumped in the air. She found herself in the other side behind Killua and, turning around, she found Gon, Kurapika and a confused Leorio.

"Gon! Kurapika!... Pietro?" he said.

"Snap out of it already," Hitomi said, annoyed. "I don't know who this Pietro guy is, but is already time to wake up," Leorio noticed and looked up to her. "Also... I told you. It. Was. A. Trap."

"Hitomi, you little...!" he said, as he wanted to hit her.

She only trick her tongue out. Killua looked at them. "Hey, old man," he said. "There's no time for chattering!"

"Old man-?!" he now noticed Killua. "Hey, you're-"

"His name is Killua," Gon introduced him.

Again, Killua threw a couple of bombs. Leorio just watched, cluelessly while the other covered themselves in another side.

"I highly recommend you to move your ass from there," the girl said when...

 ** _BANG!_**

They arrived as they wanted to, but they didn't pass unnoticed. All of the examinee and Satotsu glanced at them.

"What's going on?" Satotsu asked.

"Sorry, we broke the wall," Gon laughed, nervously.

"I never said you couldn't destroy the wall," he said. "You came back alive after wandering into the Tunnel of Hallucination. I'm very impressed."

Then, Leorio found Tonpa in there, and made his way to him. He grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. "How dare you? I'll never forgive you!"

"Stop it, Leorio!" Gon asked the boy.

"Shut up! Doesn't he piss you off?"

"There are always obstacles in the test." Kurapika reasoned.

Hitomi shook her head, crossing her arms. "My, my... I hope I don't regret it," she said, glaring at him.

"Doesn't matter," Killua smirked, "if he does something reckless, we can always kill him mercilessly, right?" he glared at him as well.

Tonpa sweated, laughing nervously.

* * *

Hitomi ran in silence beside her brother, a little behind the others. She didn't know what to say to him, after the quarrel they had have.

"Hitomi," Kurapika was the first to break the ice, "About earlier..."

"Yeah?" she didn't even look at him. He sighed.

"I'm sorry," he finally said, "I would have to believe you before, and I shouldn't have to shout you out after that... I just-"

"-wanted to protect me?" she suggested.

Kurapika stared at his feet and Hitomi started at him. Then she found all the anger she had been holding inside her slowly vanishing, being replaced itself with guilt.

Just remembering the cruel words she had spat to him, her heart ached in anger, this time to herself.

"I'm a terrible brother," he admitted, smiling sadly.

No, he was terribly _wrong._

She had said that she wouldn't care if he died. After that strange illusion, she realized how wrong she was back then.

For goodness sake, what had she done?

"I'm the one who should be apologizing. I'm the one who is the terrible sister," she murmured and Kurapika looked at her in surprise, "I yelled at you. I said horrible things to you. And you just meant to protect me. I was blind, but now I see _I_ was the idiot... Sorry."

Kurapika chuckled. She looked up to him, surprised by his actions.

"I was blind too," he admitted, "Saying all this stuff... you've grown up before I realized."

"We were both blind," she snickered, "Maybe it's on the blood."

And both siblings laughed hard. She felt a huge weight out her chest, now that they weren't at odds anymore.

She gave her brother a last smile, before speeding up to reach Killua and Gon. They both moved, to let her in.

"Isn't good?" Gon asked.

Hitomi looked at him in wonder.

"You two are in terms again!" he grinned, "It was sad to watch you arguing to each other."

"Mmm..." she murmured, with a slight smile in her face. "Well, yeah."

They continued running for a while, until they found a light in the end of the way.

"The exit!" Gon exclaimed, happily.

"You look happy," Killua noted.

"Yeah," the girl nodded, uninterested.

"Aren't any of you happy?" the boy asked, slightly impressed at their actions.

Killua just shrugged.

"Not really. It's only an exit," he replied. "What a boring test it is! It's not even a game!"

Hitomi found smiling at herself once again, looking at both of the boys.

"But if you pass, you can be a Hunter," Gon said, excited.

"Why do you want to be a Hunter that bad?" the Killua asked, curiously.

"My dad is a Hunter," he replied. "I bet he's a great Hunter!"

"You bet?" Hitomi asked, as confused as the boy.

"Yup. I was raised at my aunt's house," he explained. "I only know my dad through a photo," they looked at him, in amazement. "But it's okay! I want to be a Hunter like my dad."

Hitomi chuckled.

"You sure trust too much in others. You father could be just an idiot and you got all the trouble to take this exam and maybe die for him," she teased. "Good luck, though."

"You're mean!" he complained.

"But I think she is right," Killua smirked.

"You too, Killua?!"

She snickered, along the boy. It was nice to be with them.

"Why do you want to be a Hunter?" Killua asked Hitomi out of cold. "You want revenge?"

The happiness vanished in the air. She glared at the boy.

"Kurapika wants, I just want to recollect the eyes. There were all taken from the bodies," she replied.

"Why was that?" Gon asked, "Why would they want their eyes?"

Killua looked at him, in disbelief.

"You don't know? The Kuruta Clan is known for the eyes of their people," he explained, "They turn scarlet when they are angry and all that stuff. Now, they are the most valuable jewel in the black market."

Hitomi nodded.

"It's usual for us to burn the body to let the person rest in peace, but I feel that without their eyes, they won't be able to do that," she admitted. "No matter what, I will find all of them."

"I'm sure you'll achieve it," Gon grinned. "You'll be a great Hunter."

Killua smiled to her too, in silent support.

"Yeah, you too," she replied.

* * *

Once outside, they reached a swamp.

"It's the Milsy Wetlands. Also known as the 'Swindler's Swamp'," Satotsu explained, while the others looked at the place cautiously. "We must go through this in order to reach the site of Phase Two."

Hitomi sighed. It looked like she was forced to continue running. She was feeling pretty lazy to do so.

"Many strange animals are unique to this marsh. They try to deceive people and turn them into fodder. They are very cunning and greedy creatures," he continued, before looking at them. "You must follow me very carefully. If you get tricked, you die."

The girl rolled her eyes, it was always the same. When would the Exam end? She was positive that the whole Exam would be running, and it made her feel like she was just in the beginning.

Also, she was _bored._

But, something caught her attention.

"It's a lie!" they heard someone shouting. "He's fraud!"

All of them looked behind them to see a man, who was holding a strange dead animal, whose face had a little resemblance to Satotsu's.

The person pointed at the proctor.

"He's a fraud! He isn't the proctor!" he shouted. "I am the real one!"

The girl furrowed her eyebrows, when she saw all the applicants tensing, trying to discover which of them is telling the truth, in vain, obviously.

"Hey, mister," Leorio spoke. "Do you have any proof?"

"Take a look at this!" the man threw the monkey to the floor. "That's the Man-Faced Ape that lives in the Milsy Wetlands. It disguises itself as a human and tricks people into traps. He's a Man-Face Ape too! It'll kill all you applicants to devour."

"Now that you mention it, he does look like it..." the ninja guy noticed.

"No wonder! His running ability in the underground wasn't human..." Leorio said.

"Yeah. It explains why this guy doesn't have a mouth too," Hitomi said, sarcastically.

Nearly no one seemed to heard her comment and came closer to Satotsu. Though, she saw her brother shaking his head at her lame joke.

"Is this a part of the Hunter Exam, after all?" Gon asked, suddenly.

The comment seemed to change the mood. They all stopped, and seemed to consider that possibility.

"Gon, can't you tell?" Leorio whispered in his ear. "Using that wild hunch of yours..."

"Nope, not at all," he said.

Hitomi scoffed.

"Are you all idiots? No-mouth is the real one," she suggested.

They all looked at her.

"How do you know?" Leorio asked.

"If he were an animal, he would have eaten us long, _long_ time ago," she explained. "Why would he get in all the trouble to make us run for _hours_ to get us to the place where the so-called proctor is? Even if it were the case, he would be starving right now."

"He is trying to tire you all to make the hunt easier," the so-called examiner replied.

"Really?" she raised an eyebrow, "Prove us you are a Hunter then."

Kurapika put a hand over her sister's shoulder and took a step forward.

"If he is a genuine proctor, he should have a Hunter License," he said.

"He stole my Hunter License!" he shouted. "He took me by surprise and stole everything!"

 _"That's it, then,"_ the girl thought as she came closer. "Can I see the monkey for a bit, please?" she asked.

All of the examinee looked at her as she came closer to the monkey. She took out her knife and played with it for a while. She finally stabbed the ground, two inches from the monkey's face.

The others looked at her in confusion as she kneeled down next to the monkey.

"You're sweating, dear monkey," she said, giving it a terrifying smile. "Are scared of something?"

The monkey panicked and opened its eyes. It started to run, when a card pierced the animal's body.

She quickly looked at the one who did that, Hisoka. He threw another card towards her, and she avoided it as well as she could.

Instead of Hitomi, it stabbed in the man who had brought the monkey. He couldn't dodge it, and fell in the floor, lifeless.

Another card flew towards Satotsu, but he caught it.

"This way is quicker, isn't it?" Hisoka said.

She glared at him, before going towards their friends.

"Are you okay?" Kurapika asked in worry.

She just nodded.

"I guess this confirms that you're the real one, huh, Mr. Proctor?" Hisoka said to Satotsu. "The Hunter we're all aspiring to become must be capable of dodging a mild attack like that."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Satotsu said, throwing the ace of clovers to the floor. "But from next time, any violence directed at the proctor under any circumstances will be deemed as a rebellious act and you'll be disqualified immediately. Do I make myself clear?"

"I know, I know," he said, before smiling at Hitomi.

She felt a shiver run through her body, giving her an unpleasant bad feeling.

"It stinks," Killua said. Gon looked at him, cluelessly.

"A Hunter would never be deceived by the likes of a Man-Faced Ape," Kurapika said, "I knew he was a fraud when he said his Hunter Licence was stolen."

"I did when Hitomi said that Satotsu was the real one!" Gon said, grinning.

She looked at him, a little surprised. It didn't last long until she let a chuckle escape from her lips. Leorio and Hanzo, on the other hand, laughed nervously.

"I bet you two didn't even notice," the girl murmured.

"Shut up!" they shouted, at the same time.

Then, she realized that Gon was staring at the monkey Hisoka had killed. She and Killua got closer to him.

"Hey, how long are you going to stare at it?" Killua asked.

"You don't need to feel sad about it," Satotsu said. "Risky entrapments like this is an ordinary part of life for them."

The girl watched the ravens stood in front of the corpse, in order to eat it. "The survival of the fittest," she murmured, narrowing her eyes.

That was right. Only the fittest survive in this cruel world.

So was the Exam. The thought of it made her nervous.

* * *

That's all for today.

 **To** **Arrow-chan3** **SoulXHunter** **:** Thank you for reviewing! I'm glad you two liked last chapter and I hope you enjoy this one as well :)

See you!


	5. Creepy Clown x Sushi x Failure?

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Creepy Clown x Sushi x Failure?**

"It's getting foggy." Gon noticed, while they were running. Hitomi, Killua and him ahead Leorio and Kurapika.

"Let's move further to the front." Killua suggested.

Hitomi stared at him, seriously.

"Yup," Gon replied. "We'll be in trouble if we lose the proctor."

"He doesn't mean that, I think he's talking about Hisoka," Hitomi clarified. "He's itching for a kill. Psychos like him do that."

Gon looked surprised for a moment.

"He'll take the advantage of the fog to kill a quite few," Killua completed, before looking at him. "You seem to ask me 'Why do you know all that?' It's the smell."

"The smell?" he asked, confused.

"Now you are a dog?" she teased.

"I'm not!" he exclaimed, annoyed. "He and I are alike, that's why."

She looked at him, but didn't say anything.

"You don't seem like that, though," Gon said.

"That's because I've been acting all along like that monkey but I'm in the perfect disguise," Killua commented. "You'll find that out eventually."

But, Gon didn't seem to listen him.

"Kurapika! Leorio!" he shouted. "Killua said we'd better move to the front!"

"Stupid! I would've gone a long ago if I could!" Leorio yelled back.

"But you have to do it somehow!"

Hitomi, on the other hand, facepalmed at his action.

"He has to know what danger is, that idiot." she murmured.

"No sense of suspense," Killua agreed, sighing.

As time passed by, the fog got thicker and thicker, to the point to not be able to see behind them. Gon grew really nervous.

He couldn't stand it anymore, turned around and started running towards the back.

"Gon!" Killua exclaimed.

Hitomi clenched her teeth at the thought of Gon, Leorio and his brother facing that guy. All the scenarios of their tragic death blinded her mind.

Would they last even a second in front of him?

Would _she_ last even a second in front of him?

No, but...

She slowed down and clenched her fist. Killua looked at her for a moment, waiting for her to say something.

"See you later!" Killua heard Hitomi mutter under her breath, before running on the opposite direction.

"Wait, Hitomi!" Killua exclaimed.

But he found himself alone, once again. He grabbed his skateboard and got up on it, like he lost all of his interest.

"They're both stupid children!" Hanzo said. "They have gone back to save the others."

The boy skated at his side, nonchalantly.

"Yeah, they are really stupid," he said.

* * *

After awhile, she finally found them. Not in the way she wanted, but the one she expected instead. Leorio was on the floor, Kurapika was in a fighting stance and Gon was held by his neck, Hisoka's courtesy.

She threw her dagger towards him, but he grabbed it easily. He looked at her and smiled.

"Oh my, Hitomi-chan." he said, still holding Gon. "How do you do?"

Hitomi didn't say anything. She just stood there, browsing another dagger in front of her.

Suddenly, she noticed someone standing at her side, he was Kurapika. He had his swords in front of him, ready to fight.

Hitomi looked at him for a couple of seconds, before nodding. She glared at Hisoka, determined.

Hisoka stared at all of them and smiled.

"Yup. You all pass," he said, letting Gon go. He left the dagger in the ground.

They all saw Hisoka making his way to Leorio. He put him over his shoulder, making them tense.

"Give Leorio back!" Gon shouted.

"If you want him back, catch up with me," he said.

With that, Hisoka started running and vanished in the fog. Hitomi, on the other hand, only sighed, going to recollect her knife.

"We have to find him," she said.

Gon nodded and told them to follow him, and so they did.

"Can you tell the way that clearly?" Kurapika asked.

"Yup. The cologne Leorio uses is very distinctive," he replied.

Both of the siblings stayed silent. They looked at each other, in confusion. Hitomi pointed his friend.

"Hey..." she said, soft enough only for her brother to hear, "Is he a dog?"

"I wonder..." he replied.

Gon didn't hear them, and continued. "Besides, animals lie dead on the ground as if to guide us. I suppose they were killed by Hisoka after they attacked."

The girl glanced at the dead animal bodies, seeing how right he was.

"But, it doesn't necessarily mean Hisoka is heading towards a goal," Kurapika commented.

"Yeah," Hitomi nodded in response. "He's evil. He maybe... no, _surely_ let us free in order to kill us later. He seems enjoy the hunt."

"Still, I can't leave Leorio!" Gon said.

Neither of them said nothing for a while, before Gon broke the silence.

"Hisoka was saying that we had passed the test," he said. "What does he mean?"

"He said he was pretending to be a proctor," Kurapika analyzed. "In other words, he was judging us."

"But he only stared at me!" Gon said. "And Leorio fainted."

"Experience. You punched him before, didn't you?" Kurapika said, calmly. "His movements are beyond human, he is a genius. An experienced fighter can ascertain the ability of another the moment he has physical contact."

His sister nodded, in agreement.

"Hisoka could have sensed such things and perceived the same scent as his in all of us, including Leorio," she said.

"Same scent, huh?" he said, thinking about it.

* * *

Killua didn't take his eyes from the path. It was about time, and it seemed like they wouldn't make it.

"It's ironic. He went for a mummy and became one himself," Hanzo said. "They went to rescue their friends and missed the chance to pass."

The boy opened slightly his eyes at the sight of three silhouettes in the road ahead. It didn't last long until he realized that they were Kurapika, Hitomi and Gon.

"Gon, Hitomi," he murmured to himself, smiling.

The time ended just when they stepped at the place. The three looked for Leorio, but found Hisoka. He pointed at Leorio, who was leaning on a tree.

He opened his eyes when they got closer to him. Kurapika examined his arm.

"Umm..." he said. "Except the wound in his arm, he seems alright."

"Check my face!" he exclaimed, pointing to the huge bump in his cheek.

Kurapika looked at it, with a stoic expression. "You look the same as usual," he said.

"I would say you look _better_ as usual," Hitomi teased. "It would distract the people who see you and don't look at your idiotic old face. Isn't that good?"

"You brat!" he said, annoyed. "Damn! What's going on?!"

Kurapika stood up, while Gon just asked. "Don't you remember?"

"Don't be rude to me!" he said. "I do remember stepping into the marsh and..."

Hitomi sighed.

"Don't you remember? Hiso-" a hand made her shut up. She struggled from her brother's grasp, but it was useless.

"It's nothing!" Gon laughed, nervously and Leorio just looked at them in wonder.

"We better not tell him," Kurapika whispered.

She gasped for air, before glaring at him. Kurapika sweatdropped.

"Whatever..." she murmured.

Then, she saw Killua. Gon noticed not long after, and they walked to him casually. Killua smirked when he saw them coming.

"You two did it," he said. "What kind of magic did you use? I thought you would never make it!"

"Actually..." Hitomi said, unsure of how to say it. "It was Gon's nose. He smelled Leorio's scent."

Killua chuckled and started laughing, before he got that they weren't joking.

He blinked one time... two times... before realizing the truth.

"You really followed Leorio's scent?!" he asked him, loudly.

"Yeah," he replied, grinning.

"You really are very different," Killua commented. "Frankly speaking, you're a dog, aren't you?"

"You think that too?" he laughed, nervously.

"You're a puppy," Hitomi said, poking him in the forehead.

Gon looked confused and opened his big chocolate eyes.

"Really?"

"You even have puppy eyes!" Killua exclaimed.

They laughed for a while, before Satotsu walked into the front.

"Congratulations. The people who made it here, passed the first exam," he said. "I wish all of you good luck on the second exam."

The clock marked twelve o'clock exactly and the doors of the house they were looking at opened. It revealed two people.

One of them wasn't big, he was _enormous_ instead. The other one was really different. She was a girl, who looked like she was in her twenties, and had bright pink hair and blue eyes.

"Thank you for waiting." the woman said, before lifting her head to see the big man. "How is it? Buhara, are you getting hungry now?"

"I'm starving, Menchi," Buhara replied.

Hitomi didn't like how the events were deploying. She was afraid of her premonitions coming true.

"We, the Gourmet Hunters, are in a charge of evaluating Phase Two," Menchi announced.

The girl paled at the thought.

"That means the subject will be-" Hanzo said.

"Right! The subject for Phase Two is... _cooking._ " she declared.

"Cooking?" all the examinee asked, at the same time.

It was expected for her. _"Damn it."_

At least, it looked like she wasn't the only one who didn't like that.

"Why the hell do I have to cook after reaching this far?!" The number 255, known as Todo, asked.

"You over there! If you want to complain, go to home," Menchi said, pointing at him. "Anyone else who has objections to the test can go home immediately."

The girl shuggered. _"Sooner or later is the same, anyway."_

Just like her, the others kept silent.

"Anyway, what kind of food do we have to cook?" Hanzo asked.

"First, you must cook a dish that I order," Buhara said.

"And only those of you who pass will be allowed to cook what I order next." Menchi continued. "In short, if both of us say the dish is 'delicious', you pass Phase Two."

All participants started to complain once again. Hitomi just shook her head, while Menchi clapped her hands, to shut them up.

"Look. As I said a minute ago, if you don't want to take the test, you're free to go home. Go on, goodbye."

"No kidding! How can I go back after coming this far?!" Leorio shouted.

"Yeah, for an old man like you, running is really tiring," Hitomi teased, deadpan.

"You little demon!" He shouted, annoyed.

Fuss started once again, since nearly everyone was concerned about the rules and other people just wanted them to shut up.

"Umm..." Gon made them calm down a little bit. "Can you continue with what you were saying?"

Menchi looked at him and closed her eyes, in resignation.

"In short, if you can make both of us say 'delicious' you pass," she said. "The test will be over when we're both full!"

 _"Or when they are both poisoned, more likely,"_ Hitomi thought, grimly.

"Damn! I've never cooked in my life," Leorio said.

"I never expected this," Kurapika commented.

"I have," Gon said, happily.

All four looked at him, surprised.

"What can you cook?" the girl asked.

"Many things," he replied. "But my speciality is a bowl of rice with a raw egg on the top!"

Hitomi flinched, remembering the last time she made that dish. Kurapika glared at her by the corner of his eye and she sweatdropped. Then, he looked back to Gon.

"Uh, I guess that can be described as cooking, but..." he stated.

On the other side, Killua turned to the girl and eyed her curiously. She, annoyed, raised an eyebrow.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"Your face says that you've cooked that dish before, haven't you?" he teased her.

She flinched once again and notice the other three looking at her. _"He is a smart one..."_

"You did?" Gon asked, eagerly.

"Umm... yeah," she replied, unsure of what to say. "Kind of."

Killua raised an eyebrow.

"That day-" she began.

"She nearly killed me," Kurapika completed for her. "It wasn't a beautiful thing to remember."

She glared at him.

They kept silent for a while, before Leorio broke on laughter.

"It was expected!" he laughed. "Some stupid midget like you would never accomplish something like that!"

"Shut up, at least I tried!" she said, annoyed and embarrassed, "You didn't even try. I bet you are worst than me!"

They both looked away, and the others sweatdropped. They paid Buhara attention, once he started talking.

"Well, then..." he said. "My order is... a whole roast pig!"

"A whole roast pig?" Hanzo asked, cluelessly.

"My favourite," he said, drooling. "Using the most dangerous pig in the world living in this forest. The Great Stamp!"

Before anyone could even say something, they realized that something was coming their way. Hitomi and Killua jumped out the way, Kurapika, Gon, Leorio and other more participants started to run for it, and the rest got hit by the big crowd of wild animals.

"I'd be an idiot if I didn't realized that they are The Great Stamp," Hitomi said, before running up to one of them.

"Good luck!" Killua teased. "You'll need it."

"Actually, you'll be the one needing it, because I'm going to kill you!" she said and he smirked.

"Good luck with that too!"

With that, they splitted up.

The found one and jumped. She kicked its head and it fell on the ground. She saw the place in where they were supposed to cook it and sighed.

 _"The toughest part begins..."_

Hitomi started to kick it and made it roll, in order to take it there.

* * *

The pigs were all eaten, and _all_ delicious to Buhara.

"I don't get it..." Hitomi murmured.

"I don't either," Kurapika said. "Clearly the volume he ate is much more than his whole body!"

"It's not what I mean..." she replied softly. "But you're right in a way..."

The thing she didn't understand was that Buhara seemed to be fine, and he'd eat the pig she had cooked. She was positive she had burnt it.

She didn't need to be a genius to see that, it was _completely_ black after all.

"I'm not like Buhara. I won't be easy! I will judge very harshly," Menchi said. "The second half of Phase Two! I'm going to order... Sushi."

What. The. Hell?

That's when Hitomi realized she was so dead.

"You guys look very troubled," Menchi said, grinning slightly. "Well, I don't blame you for not knowing it. It's the ethnic cuisine of a small island nation."

The girl's eyebrow twitched. How was she supposed to do that?

"I'll give you a hint!" she said, pointing inside the place. "Take a good look inside here."

They all entered there, just to see a lot of knives and bowls, all full of white rice. She told them that the tools were the bare minimum they would need.

"All right, you may start!" she said. "When I'm full, the test will be over!"

Gon got closer to the rice and examined it carefully. "Do we make it with only rice?" he asked.

Killua just looked at the knives with a lot of attention. "Looking at the tools, it seems we need to use more than that."

"Maybe meat or something, and we have to cut through it," Hitomi completed the thought. "Damn it, the information is nowhere close to complete!"

She grimaced. What the hell was that 'sushi' thing?

"You're so loud! You can find fish in the river or the pond!" she heard her brother yell.

Along all the other participants, Hitomi's head turned quickly to the duo. Leorio and Kurapika looked around, just to realize what had they done.

And all participants ran to the river.

"Thanks brother!" she said to him.

He sighed, irritated.

* * *

Leorio was the first to offer Menchi his dish. She looked at it for a second and threw it away.

"Like I'd eat that!" she exclaimed.

Next to him, was Gon. He presented his own 'sushi', but it was the same result as Leorio.

"It's no different from Number 403!" she shouted.

Gon sighed, looking down all of sudden, hurt by the comment. "I'm at the same level as Leorio..." he murmured.

"I sympathize with you, Gon." Kurapika put a hand on his shoulder.

"Be positive. You two are not the same," Hitomi said. "At least you aren't as old as him."

"What did you two said?" Leorio asked, angry.

The time passed, and Menchi didn't eat any dish that was made. In a way, it was convenient. The test wouldn't end if she didn't get full.

Killua put the dish in front the examiner and smirked. He revealed it, it was somehow different from the others.

"Shrimp cocktail, marinated trout with mustard sauce and rice," he explained. "It's sushi in Bourgogne style."

Menchi looked troubled for a bit, but recovered quickly.

"That's gross!" she threw his plate too.

"Damn," Killua murmured, before getting out the place.

 _"To be expected,"_ Hitomi thought, smirking. _"That idiot."_

But, then...

 ** _BOOM!_**

Every person in the place looked at the way of the sound, shocked. They could see bright and huge flames surrounding the place, where was only fish and rice.

"What happened?" Gon asked, shocked.

Kurapika shook his head. It was expected.

"Well, my sushi burst... _into flames.._." the girl murmured, without taking her gaze out of the fire.

"How did you manage to do that?!" Killua shouted, pointing at it. "It was only rice and fish!"

"Don't ask me that!" she yelled back. "I don't know!"

"Geez! You're useless!"

"Oh, I'm sorry _Whitey,_ " she teased. "I'm not that wise, it comes with age."

"Huh?!" he asked, annoyed. "Whitey?!"

"I bet you are older than Leorio!" she said, successfully turning the fire off. "See you hoary hair if you don't believe me."

The others just stepped back, not wanting to be involved into the fight.

"Damn!" Killua said. "You're annoying!"

"Thanks," she sheepishly smiled. "Annoy people is one of my specialities, indeed."

"I can see that!"

"Good."

Killua was about to say anything else, when Menchi sighed.

"Stop you two!" she shouted, before pointing at Hitomi. "And you, start over again!"

"Yeah, yeah," she murmured.

* * *

Hitomi leaned in a wall, listening to music to calm herself. She looked at her surroundings, trying to get a clue about that sushi thing.

She noticed Kurapika walking towards her and took an earphone out of her ear.

"Did you give up yet?" he asked.

"No, I'm just trying to get any clue," she said.

"And you're having any luck?"

"Well, as long as I remember Menchi said that the shape was important and it's name... pressed sushi..." she thought. "I can guess that it's a typical shape, like a croquet or hamburger steak."

"Yeah," he agreed, "Also the item she has, and the plate with seasoning in it... If she holds the sushi with that and dips it in the liquid, the size is similar to an egg, maybe smaller. And if we add fresh meat to it... I got it!"

"Huh?" she asked, surprised at his sudden outburst. "W-Wait a min-!"

It was already late. Kurapika placed a plate in front of Menchi, confident. However, she rejected it like all others.

"You're at the same level as the first guy!"

 _"I told him to wait..."_ Hitomi facepalmed.

Being compared to Leorio hit him hard. All colour drained from his face and stood there, motionless.

His sister put a hand on his shoulder, shaking her head.

"Don't worry, you'll get over with it," she murmured.

"Yeah!" Leorio yelled, angry, "Such a shock!"

Menchi anger seemed to grow, as she received more and more wrong dishes. Then, Hanzo approached her and placed his plate in front of her.

"Finally something that looks normal," she said.

She ate it, but returned it as soon as she chewed it.

"No, it's not tasty. Do it again," she told him.

"What?!" Hanzo yelled in disbelief, "Sushi is nothing but rice molded tightly with a thin layer of raw fish on top! No matter who makes it, it won't make much difference in taste!"

They all looked at him and grinned. Menchi, on the other hand, grabbed Hanzo by his collar, angry at him.

"Damn you, bastard! They say it takes at least ten years of training to be able to make a proper sushi!" she yelled.

"Then don't pick such a thing as the test subject!" Hanzo replied.

"Shut up! Got a problem?! Want to die?!"

After the fight, she released Hanzo. Menchi looked at all the participants who had overheard, and sighed.

Even the girl who had burnt the fish accomplished the task.

"It looks like I'll have to judge by the taste."

She ate several sushi, but no one were approved.

After that, Menchi took a sip from the tea and let out a relaxed sight escape from her lips.

"Sorry! I'm full," she said.

The air suddenly tensed at that statement.

"Just as I told you at the beginning, it means no one passed," she waved, grinning. "Come again!"

No one like that statement, not even a bit.

* * *

Hitomi looked at the moss that Menchi brought. She could see that it was dangerous and all this stuff, but...

"Yeah, I understand why you're a Hunter," she spoke, "But, what does sushi have to do with this?"

Menchi just glared at her.

"Listen, girl, I won't change my opinion," she said, irritated, "Just go home and return next year."

Hitomi glared her back.

"I won't come back!" Todo shouted. "I'm going to grab your necks and drag you to the Exam Committee to tell them that Gourmet Hunters are not qualified to be proctors!"

"Do as you please," she said, nonchalantly.

"Why you...!"

He tried to attack her, but Buhara was faster. He hit him, throwing him to collide with the wall. Todo winced in pain but stood up.

"Don't interfere, Buhara," Menchi said.

Todo tried to tackle her but she avoided the hit. She just kicked him, arms still crossed. The boy fell into the floor.

"You're aspiring to become a Blacklist Hunter with that ability? Don't make me laugh!" she shouted, "It doesn't matter what kind of Hunter you want to be. If you are a Hunter, you must be skilled in fighting. That's something you'll learn as a Hunter, whether you like it or not!"

That was when Hitomi realized that someone was outside the house, overhearing their conversation. He was Satotsu.

"Menchi-san, that's enough," he said.

Todo fell unconscious into the ground.

"At this point, no one dares to doubt your ability as a proctor," Satosu continued, "How should I put it? It's not my business to say anything about Phase Two, but-"

"Then keep your mouth shut!" she yelled, "No matter what anyone says, I have no intention of changing the test results. Look! What I looked for in this test was not simply physical strength! What I was testing in this Exam was whether you had guts to confront something unknown to you!"

"Still, Menchi-san," a voice said, which made all of them jump in surprise, "Don't you think it's too harsh that no one passed?"

They looked at the window, just to see a ship with the Hunter Association logo. All of them ran outside the place.

Someone jumped out the ship and landed into the ground, leaving a huge crater on it. The old man looked at Menchi.

She flinched.

"P-President," she stuttered. "It's been awhile, President Netero.

Netero just nodded. Satotsu took a couple of steps closer to the scene.

"The president of the Exam Committee," he explained. "He's the most important person in charge for the Hunter exam."

"Well, I'm the president, but I stay behind the scenes and acts as a troubleshooter at times like this," he admitted, "Anyway, Menchi-san..."

"Y-Yes."

It took a while, but Netero made Menchi understand the whole situation. She realized she wasn't being fair at all.

"When it involves cooking, I tend to lose myself," she admitted, bowing slightly. "I am not fit to be a proctor. I'm sorry."

Netero, however, started to laugh.

"You are an honest young woman. Certainly, as a proctor, I see some problems." he said, "But it's understandable, you being a Gourmet Hunter with the title of Single Star Hunter. It's proof of your passion for cooking."

She looked at him, surprised.

"Let me propose this. We'll administer another test and I want Menchi-san to continue to be in charge of the evaluations," he suggested. "However, in this retest I want you to participate by giving a demonstration. How about it?"

Hitomi then released the breath she didn't know she was holding.

"I was really worried about what was going to happen to us," Leorio said.

"But we're still going to be tested by our cooking ability," Kurapika said. "We can't take it too easy."

"We're going to have another test!" Gon exclaimed.

"Yeah," Hitomi and Killua said in unison.

They glared to each other because of this. Kurapika shook his head at their actions.

"All right. The subject is... _boiled egg_ ," Menchi declared.

She stopped glaring at Killua and looked at Menchi. Her face fell.

Kurapika put a hand over her shoulder.

"At least I'm not the one eating your egg," he chuckled.

"Shut up!" she yelled.

* * *

Thanks to **SoulXHunter, Arrow-chan3,** **SlightlyYandereMelissa** and **A** for leaving a review! Each one of them made me really happy :)

Well, that's all for today. See you another day!


	6. Good? x Bad? x Killua's confession

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Good boy? x Bad boy? x Killua's confession**

After a while, Menchi came back with an egg in her hand.

"You are to make a boiled egg with this," she said. "You have to be careful. The river current below is very swift. If you fall, you'll be washed out straight to the sea kilometers away."

Most of them froze. They were afraid to jump.

"I'm glad," Killua said.

"I was waiting for something like this," Gon said.

"But this is not fun at all," Hitomi pouted. "Oh, well."

"It's so much simpler than running or cooking a strange ethnic dish," Leorio grinned.

"I agree," Kurapika smiled.

Leorio jumped down first, followed by Killua, Gon, Hitomi and Kurapika. The girl reached a string and grabbed it, holding herself on it.

She moved and hold her weight with the back of her knees, in order to grab an egg under her. Once she got it, she pushed herself in a sitting position to look at the others.

Hitomi smiled to herself once she saw that they weren't having any problems. Once she made sure of that, she climbed up again.

Once there, they boiled their eggs. If it wasn't for Buhara, they would be burnt now. As Menchi instructed, they tasted and compared them with a normal one.

"It's very rich and creamy, and melts in my mouth," Kurapika said. "It tastes as though the life force of the Spider Eagle is still there."

"Beautiful way to describe it," she grinned playfully, "But, still, it's just a egg."

He smiled and ruffled her hair in a playful way.

"Phase Two has forty-two who passed!" Menchi declared, "Menchi's menu is over!"

* * *

Menchi declared that they had some free time. The girl smiled to herself, as she leaned in a wall, plugging an earphone in her right ear.

She saw her brother slid down the wall, exhausted, sitting down at her side. Next to him, Leorio did the same thing.

"You two are tired?" the girl asked, in disbelief. "We haven't done anything interesting yet."

"You sure have too much energy," Kurapika sighed, still tired.

Then, Gon approached him and grinned widely at Kurapika.

"Kurapika, you're coming with Killua and me to explore the airship, aren't you?" he said.

"I'll pass," he said.

"I see..." he looked at Leorio, "How about you?"

"I'll pass, too. I don't have any energy left for that."

Hitomi felt being observed all of sudden. She then realized that both Killua and Gon were looking at her. She smiled, nervously.

But they grabbed both of her arms, dragging her along.

"What the hell are you doing?!" she yelled.

"You're coming with us!" Gon declared.

"Yeah, I can see that!" she said, annoyed. "But how come you let Leorio and Kurapika choose and me not?"

"You have not authority in this issue," Killua told her, "You're coming you like it or not!"

She glared at them.

"It'll be fun!" Gon said.

"Yeah, it's fun to be kidnapped..." she murmured.

They let go of her and she kept running, before putting her earphone in her pocket.

"Where should we start first?" Gon asked.

"It should be the cockpit, of course," Killua replied.

Then, both Gon and Hitomi realized that Killua stopped in his tracks. He glanced at something over his shoulder.

"What's wrong?" Hitomi asked.

"It's nothing!" he replied, grinning, and started to run again.

They reached the cockpit and looked at the door. It had a huge sign in front of it.

 _"Do not enter."_

But Killua either didn't know how to read or care about it. He opened the door and the three of them looked inside it.

"See?" he said. "Isn't cool?"

"But the sign-" Gon complained.

"That's why it's called exploring. Let's go."

"You're impossible..." the girl shook her head.

They got into the place, where the pilot was. Since he didn't see them, he started to talk.

"The winds are calm and the visibility is good. The thing I fear the most on a night like this is getting sleepy," he said. "If you're not busy, will you get me some tea?"

"Why don't you make it yourself?" Killua placed his hands behind his head. "It's only tea. Don't be lazy."

The man turned around abruptly. Killua grinned.

"But, if you'll let us pilot the ship, I'll make some tea for you."

Little after that, they got kicked out of there and close the door behind. Angry, Killua got up.

"Meany! You should lock the door if you don't want anyone to come in!" he yelled.

"It was predictable," Hitomi sighed.

"... We got scolded..."

They turned around, just to see a grimacing Gon. Killua and Hitomi looked at each other and sighed.

"Come on, Gon," the girl said. "I've been scolded - specially by my brother - several times in my life and I'm still here. You'll live."

"Let's move on to the next place," Killua suggested.

They continued exploring for a long time, before they got tired. After that, Hitomi sit down in a bench, next to Killua, and Gon sat on the other side of him.

"There weren't many interesting places," Killua sighed.

"Yeah, I thought it was pretty fun," Gon smiled.

Gon seemed to notice something. Excited, he turned around and looked through the window.

"Killua, Hitomi!" he exclaimed. "Look, look!"

Both of them turned around and looked at the sight that Gon was that excited about. Hitomi smiled slightly.

"It's pretty, in a way," she admitted.

"Haven't you guys ever seen a night view before?" Killua asked.

"How about you?" Gon asked.

"My family owns private jets," he explained. "So I've seen this countless times."

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched, annoyed a little.

"We need them, since a whole mountain is our family property," both of them looked at him in surprise, "And there are about 200 servants."

"So..." she said, feeling a little irritated, "You are a rich bastard."

Killua just smirked at her.

"What do your parents do for a living?" Gon asked.

"They are assassins," he replied, in a deadpan expression.

"Both of them?"

"What kind of question is that?" Hitomi sighed, "The plural in 'assassins' answers the question itself, don't you think?"

Killua started to laugh loudly at their reactions. Both of them looked at him, questionly.

"You two are funny!" he said. "You are the first ones to take it seriously!"

Gon looked over her female friend.

"So, is he lying?" he asked her.

"No at all," she replied, before looking at Killua, "Am I wrong?"

"How do you know?" he asked, seriously.

She shrugged, not having reply at that question. He stared at her for a little, before gluing his blue gaze again in the window.

"That's strange. Most people can't tell when I'm being serious. And that was supposed to be my charming point."

"Charming?" Hitomi chuckled. "Yeah, right!"

He glared at her.

"Just an observation, my bad," she grinned. "Continue, don't mind me."

Killua glared at Hitomi for another couple of seconds, before sighing.

"Everyone is a professional assassin in my family. They'll kill anyone they're paid to kill," he told them. "It seems like they see a great potential in me, so I've undergone special training to kill since I was a little kid."

She nodded. That explained quite a lot.

"But I don't want to live my life the way someone else has laid out of me," he pointed at himself. "When I told them 'I'll decide what to do with my life myself,' my parents and brothers freaked out! My mother even tearfully lectured about how much potential I have as an assassin."

Both Gon and Hitomi sweatdropped.

"Aren't they awful? Most kids would try to run away," he sighed.

"And that was what you did, didn't you?" Hitomi asked.

"Well, yeah," he admitted. "We wound up fighting. I nearly killed my mother and my brother, and ran away. I bet they're frantically searching for me now."

She stared at him. _"He nearly killed his mother, a full trained assassin,"_ she thought. _"Creepy."_

"Well, if they show up, I'll just beat them up," he grinned, "When I become a Hunter, I'll catch everyone in my family. I bet I can trade them for a good price!"

Hitomi sweatdropped once again.

"Killua, you're amazing," Gon suddenly said.

"What?" he said confused. Hitomi just looked at Gon in wonder.

"I never thought about surpassing my dad."

"I see... I guess capturing my dad would mean surpassing him..." he replied.

"I know you can do it!"

Killua's eyebrow twitched.

"You don't sound very convincing!" Killua said. "You don't even know my dad."

"Well, maybe in fifty years then," Hitomi joked. The boy sighed.

"Whatever," he said. "Let's go have some tea."

All of sudden, the boy jumped from his seat and started to run. He stood in front a corridor and stared at the air.

Gon and Hitomi ran up to him.

"Killua! What's the matter?" Gon asked.

"It's nothing," he replied, before smiling. "Well, let's go have some lava tea."

Gon nodded, walking beside him. The girl glanced at the empty corridor before staring at Killua's back. A deep frown draw itself in her features.

Both of them turned around.

"Hitomi, we're gonna leave you!" Killua said, annoyed.

She snapped out of it and started to walk beside them.

However, she was still worried. Killua...

His smile was fake.

* * *

"Killua," Gon called over to him. "You've been acting funny."

"Not really..." Killua took another sip from his tea.

Neither of them got convinced with that answer, but didn't press further. After a period of silence, Gon spoke once again.

"Hey, I wonder how many more test we have to take."

"I don't know..." he replied.

Silence again. Both Gon and Hitomi looked at each other.

Little after, Hitomi's eyebrow began to twitch in annoyment. She stood up, hitting the table with her own hands.

"What is your problem?!" she asked. "Why are you that angry? Who is it?"

He looked up to her, before directing his gaze to another direction.

"It has nothing to do with you," he replied.

The girl bit her lip at his lame explanation, before sitting down again. She stared fiercely at the boy, but he didn't say anything else.

"May I sit there?" a girl asked.

They looked at the girl. She had two black pony-tails and blue eyes, which were glaring at the Killua's ones.

 _"So, she is_ _Killua's problem..."_ she thought.

Gon nodded, allowing the young woman to join them.

"I'm Anita," she introduced herself.

"I'm Gon, she is Hitomi and he is Killua," Gon introduced, while pointing at them.

She smiled and politely nodded, despite she was not happy at all of her presence here. Killua, however, didn't change his expression.

Silence, once again. Hitomi was getting tired of it.

"I'm aiming to become a Blacklist Hunter," Anita shared out of cold.

"Do you have anyone in particular you want to capture?" Gon asked, innocently.

Hitomi didn't like the way that things were developing.

"I want revenge. I want to avenge my father who was murdered. My father was a trader who managed a spice mine. He organized a fleet and exported spice rocks from the spice mine to the world. At the best times, he was making a profit big enough to buy a small country. However, there was someone who envied his success and hired an assassin," she said, before glaring at Killua. "I didn't even have to investigate. The name of the assassin was from the Zoldyck family."

That was the moment when Gon understood. Killua, however, smirked in a really scary way.

The tense atmosphere vanished into the thin air when a hand was put in Anita's shoulder.

"I see, I see... How difficult and sad it must be!"

Hitomi sweatdropped at the sight of Leorio, flirting with the girl.

"I understand how you feel. Let's become Hunters together and make sure your dream come true," he told her. "By the way, I'm Leorio. What's your name?"

"She's Anita-san!" Gon said, grinning.

"Anita... It's a nice name," he said in a soft voice. "How about it? Instead of talking to these kids, why don't we move over there, so that we grown-ups can talk about our dreams?"

"We can't do that!" she hissed. "Leave me alone!"

"I can't," another voice joined.

Hitomi rolled her eyes, seeing that her brother was there too.

"My name is Kurapika," he introduced himself, "I'm also aiming to become a Blacklist Hunter. So I can relate to your situation."

"I wouldn't get too deeply involved if I were you," Killua jumped in the conversation. "She has some business with me."

Anita abruptly stood up.

"I heard a rumor that a family member of the Zoldyck family was going to be taking the Hunter Exam this year," she glared at the boy.

 _"Then Killua is..."_ Kurapika furrowed his eyebrows.

"Bingo. No doubt about it, I am member of the Zoldyck family!" Killua said.

As soon as Anita put her hand on her knife, the boy glared at her, making her flinch.

"You'd better remember this," he said. "Having an assassin sent means that the person was really hated by others."

"I can never forgive you!" she yelled.

She threw the table that Hitomi and Gon were sitting on, and launched to Killua. Kurapika tried to hold her back, but she got free seconds before it.

Anita tried to stab Killua. He somehow vanished from her sight and appeared behind her. She tried to attack again, but a pair of fingers stopped her from doing so.

Netero was there.

"Don't stop her, noisy old geezer," Killua said.

"Certainly a dispute between candidates is not a matter of concern for proctors," the chairman said. "However, Applicant Number 111 failed the test that was readministered in Phase Two."

Anita's hand fell limply next to her.

"No matter what the circumstance, you have no chance of winning against one who has qualified," Netero told her.

And she was taken by Netero and a couple of guards. Leorio crossed his arms, still looking at her back.

"She should've known that she would be caught right away even if she snuck in," he said.

"If I had flunked the test, I might have done the same thing," Kurapika stated, sadly. "It's not logic, something like this..."

She looked at her brother's sorrow and looked away, clenching her fists. It wasn't only understanding... also she just couldn't endure seeing her brother like this.

Hitomi playfully hit his arm, smiling sadly at him. Once she saw the one of his own, she walked away along with Gon.

They reached Killua, who was busy looking through the window. She stuffed her hands on her pockets and released a long sigh.

"What do you want?" he asked them, "Now you two know. I'm the kind of person who makes enemies."

"But you didn't kill him, did you?" Gon asked while Hitomi nodded beside him.

"What makes you think so?"

"She said that she heard about a member of the Zoldyck taking the Exam, not _the one_ who killed her father particularly," Hitomi said. "Also... I don't know. Let's just said that we can feel it."

They stayed in silence for a while or so.

"Mito-san told me 'if you want to know someone, know what makes them angry'," Gon recalled her aunt's quote. "We want to know more about you, Killua."

"Leave me alone."

Gon and Hitomi looked at each other. The girl sighed, taking a step closer to him.

"We won't," she declared.

"Just _leave me alone_..." he repeated, no one spoke. "Go away!"

"You won't get rid of us that easily," she replied.

"I told you to get away!" he yelled.

Then he extended his hand and moved it quickly, like he was about to kill her. It stopped a few inches before her skin.

And she smirked.

He lowered his hand and stepped back, staring at both of them before colliding with the wall. After a while, he turned around again.

"Suit yourselves!" he said, giving up.

Gon and Hitomi exchanged smiles of victory. However, their smiles vanished when they heard someone behind them.

The President was there again.

"I heard it from Anita," he said. "That you're a member of an assassin family."

"So what?" he blurted.

"Don't get so irritated," Netero grinned.

"You're the one picking a fight with me!"

"Hey, hey, calm down whitey-boy!" Hitomi said, hands still inside her pockets. "He isn't doing anything like that."

"Whitey-boy..." he murmured, irritated.

She grinned, and he looked away.

"Hey, what'll happen to Anita-san?" Gon asked out of cold.

"It's none of your business, is it?"Netero said.

"Don't say that. Tell me," he pleaded.

"Well, I'm sure she'll be punished severely," the president told him, "It's possible she may never be eligible to apply for a Hunter Exam again," they all flinched. "Do you care?"

"Can you don't do that?" Gon asked him.

"You say it too casually, but..." he seemed to think about it. "Well, alright."

His response took all of them for surprise.

"But on the condition that you win a bet against me."

* * *

"Well, it's really a simple game," Netero exclaimed, holding a ball in his hand. "Before we reach the next destination, if you can get this ball from me, you win. Then I will drop the charge against that girl."

"No thanks!" Killua said, uninterested. "Why would I do that for her?"

"Fine with me!" Anita yelled. "I don't want pity from a member of killers either!"

"Geez! This is a game," the chairman sighed. "Can't you take it more casually? Or could it be that you don't have the confidence to beat me?"

Killua furrowed his eyebrows at that.

"All right, I'll offer you an extra reward," he suggested. "If you win, I will give you a Hunter License."

They gaped in disbelief.

"I-Is that okay?" Gon asked.

"I am the president. If I say so, that's it."

The three of them looked at each other. They returned their gaze to the president, still shocked at his proposition.

"That's so irresponsible," they said in unison.

"You can attack me anyway you want. I won't fight back," he promised.

Hitomi narrowed her eyes at his sentence.

 _"He is confident. Is that he knows we aren't able to get the ball, even if he doesn't attack?"_

"I'll start."

He launched at him, attacking in all ways as possible. Netero avoided him several times, making Killua every time more irritated.

 _"Is he really as old as he looks? What speed!"_ Killua thought, before jumping to attack him. _"Well then, first I'll stop his movement!"_

With all his strength, Killua kicked Netero's leg and smirked, making both Gon and Hitomi flinch.

As soon as the president grinned, Killua's smirk were replaced by an expression of grimace. He grabbed his own leg and started to jump in pain.

"Ouch!" he cried, "That hurts!"

Hitomi facepalmed. She sighed and sat down into the floor.

It would take a while.

"That was an awfully good kick with nothing held back. If it were the leg of an ordinary person, it would have been shattered," Netero said, still playing with the ball.

"This old geezer's legs are like steel," he commented, standing up.

"What's the matter? Are you giving up already?"

Killua gritted his teeth.

 _"Damn... He's making a fool of me!"_ he thought, before smirking. _"Watch this."_

He started to quietly walk around Netero, and Hitomi found every second more difficult to heard his footsteps. After a while, the boy disappeared in darkness.

"H-He disappeared..." Gon said, stunned.

"He erased his existence, like vanishing into darkness," Hitomi murmured under her breath, still amazed. "An ability used by assassins," she looked at Gon. "This is Killua's true ability."

Netero stopped playing around with his ball and looked for him everywhere

"I got it!" he yelled.

But Netero just ducked and avoided the attack.

The blonde shook her head.

"It obvious he would avoid you if you yell behind him," she said. "He's old but not deaf!"

"Shut up!"

After that, he took off his shirt, leaving only the one he wore beneath. He left it on the floor, before smiling confidently.

"It's a pretty fun game," he admitted. "I'm getting eager to do it."

Killua ran over to him, but Netero moved his hand, preventing him from grabbing the ball. The same happened a few times, until the boy managed to hold his wrist that was holding the ball.

He stretched his hand. The tips of his fingers were about to touch it.

But Netero threw it right into Killua's face.

"It was a pass," the man excused himself. "Your face just happened to be in the way."

Killua growled, with his hand still in his hurted nose.

"You lose the ball when it is right under your nose," the girl chuckled. "Literally."

"Damn, you're annoying!" he glared at her.

Gon took a step ahead.

"Killua! Let's switch!" he suggested.

Killua nodded, before leaving the place with his shirt over his shoulder. Gon, however, sprinted and jumped high.

 _Too high._ His head collided with the roof. He winced in pain, with his hands on his head.

"I get it that you can jump really high, but you'd better control it, Gon," Killua said, feeling a little annoyed.

"I think he did that on purpose," she told him in a soft voice.

He raised an eyebrow at her. Netero looked at Gon and sighed.

"I couldn't tell from his face, but he is using his brain," he said.

"Oops, I failed," Gon grinned, getting up.

Hitomi looked at him with an 'I-told-you' expression. He just shrugged, before sitting down right next to her.

"Why are you doing this?" Anita asked Killua out of cold. "If you are doing it to atone for your crime, stop it. Doing this won't make me-"

"It's nothing like that," Killua interrupted her. "I'm just testing my ability. What I'm after is neither the ball not that old man, it's my father's back."

Hitomi looked back to Gon, just to see him kneeling down, gasping for air. She sighed, before standing up.

"Gon, let's switch!" she said. "Take a break."

He sighed, before walking away. He passed next to her.

"It's no good," he said, high-fiving the girl's hand. "I can't even touch the ball."

"Don't worry," she assured him. "This has just started."

She started to run towards him, trying to grab the ball. He showed her off, making her jump back. She pushed herself once again with the wall, but he avoided her again.

 _"I have to grab myself on him..."_ she thought.

Once again, she ran towards him and jumped. Netero ducked in order to avoid her. However, she reached his shoulders and clinged on him.

Netero's eyes opened in surprise at her actions. He moved around, but she didn't let go.

She stretched her arm and touched the ball with the tips of her fingers.

"She has it!" Gon yelled, in excitement.

Netero threw the ball and, before she could even do something, jumped high. The girl's head hit the roof, making her let him go by pure reflex. The president caught the ball once again.

Once in the floor, the girl put a hand on her sore head, wincing in pain.

"You attacked m-!" she was about to said.

"I didn't. I just jumped, but you were on the way."

Her eyebrow twitched in annoyment.

"This isn't getting us anywhere," the President said. "Why don't you three attack together to save some time?"

She looked at both boys.

"Gon, Killua! Come!" she called them.

They nodded and, along with her, started to run towards the ball.

"Don't be tricked by the ball's movement," she told them. "If you concentrate too much on it, he'll figure out your next move."

They both nodded again, before going for the ball once again. Netero got surprised, given the improved movement they had in just a few seconds.

"Let's go around him more!" Killua exclaimed.

"Yeah," Gon said while Hitomi nodded.

Both boys taclked him by his sides and Hitomi jumped to attack from above. However, he stopped Gon with his knee, Killua with his hand and Hitomi was stopped by his head.

Hours passed by, but their were still trying to get the ball. Netero stared at them three. They were gasping for air and soaking in sweat, but they still had a fierce look in their eyes.

"The three of you have good expressions," the chairman commented, "You have the look of a Hunter chasing its prey."

Gon tried to kick him and Netero dodged the hit. However, the boy used his shoe to increase his range. Killua grabbed his feet, making him lose his balance and the ball. Hitomi, once again, jumped high.

She was so close.

"Not yet!" Netero shouted.

Somehow, the president managed to kick Killua and used his feet to kick the ball too, far away from her.

The three kids ran towards it. Netero pushed himself with the wall and, again, caught it first than anyone.

"That was close," he said, "I must say you three deserve a 'nice try' award."

Gon and Hitomi looked at the footprint in the wall in amazement.

"Wow... That was amazing," Gon murmured. "Wasn't it? Hitomi, Killu-"

He stopped in mid sentence.

Killua stood there, more pale than usual and covered in cold sweat. His blue eyes seemed to be clouded by the fright he was feeling towards something that his two friends didn't know what it was.

He hugged himself, like he was shielding from something inside him.

"Damn..." he murmured.

"Killua?" Hitomi asked, her eyebrows frowning a little in worry.

"I-I give up," he sentenced.

"Oh, that's no fun," Netero complained.

And Killua stormed off the room. Hitomi stared at the door long after he was gone.

"What do you two want to do?" Netero asked them, "Your partner is gone. Do you want to give up now?"

"Who cares about Killua?" the girl smirked. "I refuse to surrender to an old geezer like you."

"I want to continue too!" Gon said, excited, "We were very close just now, and we still have time. More importantly, I'll feel guilty for Anita-san if I give up right now."

"You have no chance," Anita said, "President Netero barely used his right hand and his left leg. The way it's going, you don't have a chance even if you go after the ball for a year."

Gon stared at Netero in huge surprise. Hitomi shook her head.

"I didn't think it was important, and I also thought you noticed it," the girl said.

"Oh, you noticed?" he said. "I thought I was hiding it pretty well."

Hitomi scratched the back of her head, irritated.

"Now, do you get it?" Anita asked, "Forget about me and just give up."

"No way!" he shouted. "You may be right, but it's too early to give up. In the remaining time, I'll make Netero-san use his right hand."

"Suit yourself," she gave up. "I'm going back to my cell. Is that okay?

And Anita went out the room.

"Oh, my. With the two main people gone, it's like putting the cart in front of the horses," Netero complained.

"Whatever," the girl said. "I'm glad that Drama-san is gone now. Damn, she is annoying..."

Netero chuckled at her.

"Hey, Netero-san," Gon said. "Killua disappeared earlier. How did he do that?"

"That's a specialty of those in the underground business," he replied. "You don't need to know that."

"However," Hitomi spoke. "I read about it, it's called the Shadow Step. He conceals his presence by making as little sound as possible."

"Well, that's it," Netero admitted.

"It's a great skill, isn't it?" Gon said. "Killua is awesome!"

Gon stretched his hands to grab the ball, but Netero raised his finger and avoided him from doing so.

"Nice try."

* * *

Gon and Hitomi were having troubles by breathing. They were no close to the ball yet, but it was nearly morning.

Then the girl had an idea. She whispered something and only Gon heard it.

"What tough kids you are," Netero said, amazed.

The blonde growled, before jumping in the air.

"From the above, again-?" he said.

He was cut in mid sentence when he was hit by Gon's pole, dropping the ball. She tried to get it, but Netero grabbed it first.

"Now, Gon!" she shouted.

He swinged his fishing rod, making it tangle with the man's foot. Hitomi jumped again and kicked him in his belly.

Netero stepped back while she rubbed her sore feet.

"Man, Killua was right," she murmured. "That hurts!"

"Are you alright?" Gon asked her.

She stared at him and then to the man. He was at the corner wall at his left and with his hands pressed against his back.

Hitomi thought of an idea, but it was troublesome. She knew that now she couldn't get herself to hit him with all impulse, even if she wanted too.

She looked at Gon. The reckless boy.

She bit her lip.

"Do you have any idea?" Gon asked.

"Well, I have..." she murmured. "But it's a dangerous one. We have to trust a lot in this man's actions."

Gon blinked. She told him about it.

"Hey, did you two give up yet?"

"Not at all!" Gon shouted.

He launched at him, head first. Netero, knowing that his head would spit, moved to his right. However, there was Hitomi and collided with him, making he lose the ball once again.

Gon prevented himself from falling using his rod. He pushed himself with it and, along with the girl, ran to the ball.

However, Netero pushed himself with his left leg and grabbed the ball with both hands.

Hitomi snapped her fingers.

"Damn, it was close," she said.

"You just used your right hand and your left leg, didn't you?" Gon grinned.

"Huh?" Netero said, and Hitomi just looked at him, "Err.. yes."

"We did it!" he shouted, "We won!"

He let himself fall into the ground. Hitomi stared at him, clueless.

"We won?" she managed to ask, before looking to the president. "It wasn't the purpose of the game, was it?"

"It wasn't," he replied, before grinning, "Oh, well, it doesn't matter."

She stared at him for a few seconds, before releasing a long sigh and letting herself fall into the ground like him.

"Guys!" she heard.

She pushed herself into a sitting position, just to see Killua walking towards them.

 _"At least he is okay now,"_ she thought with a smile while looking at the boy.

Hitomi had to admit it, she was a little worried because of his actions back then.

"Killua, did you see that?" Gon said happily. "We made Netero-san use both his hands and legs!"

Right after that, he started to snore. The girl shook his head and Killua smiled a little bit.

Kurapika and Leorio arrived not long after. Hitomi smiled at them briefly.

"So, you two did it after that, didn't you?" Killua asked her.

"Well, not really..." she admitted. "But, yeah."

* * *

"President Netero said he wouldn't press the charge against me," Anita told them when they landed in a tower. "Thank you, it's all thanks to you."

"It's nothing!" Gon grinned.

"I didn't meant to help you," Hitomi said embarrassed, while looking away.

Anita tensed, seeing that Killua was walking towards them. He gave her back an earing she had lost.

"It was a gift from my father!" she said.

"That's a crystal of the spice rock, isn't it?" Killua asked.

Hitomi's eyes snapped open, remembering that she had read about it.

"The refined spice rock can be addictive," he explained.

"Once you taste it, you become addicted to it," Kurapika added.

"I heard many people lost everything in order to buy the spice," Leorio commented.

"That's not true. That's a lie!" she shouted.

"It's true," Netero told her.

But still, Anita refused to believe.

"You didn't know?" Killua asked.

"My father was very kind..." the young woman's eyes filled with tears. "And there were always smiling faces around him!"

"Your happiness was built upon the misfortune of others," Killua said and walked away.

"Still, my father was precious to me," she cried.

And Hitomi was starting to feel even more irritated with Drama-san.

"And? Killua is important to us, and he wasn't even the killer," she said, with a serious expression in her face. "Why don't you just kill the right one? The one who hired the assassin? Or..."

She paused for a little, sighing. They all looked in surprise, waiting her to continue.

"Do whatever you want, but you would live better without revenge," she said. "The avenger path is the most difficult one."

Hitomi and Kurapika glared at each other. The boy knew, though, that the sentence was directed to him as well. They had talked a lot about it, but he wouldn't change his mind.

He was determined to kill the Genei Ryodan.

"Hey," Gon spoke to Anita. "Why don't you try taking the Hunter Exam next year? So you can become a real Blacklist Hunter."

Hitomi smiled, waving goodbye to the tearful girl together with the others. Gon looked at her and she nodded, starting to walk away.

"As soon as you tell Killua about this, you are dead," she threatened.

He nodded, smiling nervously.

They finally found Killua, he was standing on the middle of the nothing. Killua acknowledged them, but didn't turn around.

"You didn't tell her that you weren't the one who killed her father," Gon said.

"It was probably done by one of my brothers or my mom," he said. "Either way, it was done by a member of the Zoldyck family."

"But it wasn't you," Hitomi replied.

He smirked, turning around.

"That's the family business," he said. "I'm used to people holding grudges against me."

She didn't say anything but... His situation was a little sad.

"Attention, everyone!"

They all turned around, to see Netero's secretary.

"This Trick Tower is going to be the test site for Phase Three," he told them. "Anyway, the task in this test is very simple: Reach the bottom of this tower alive. The time limit is seventy-two hours!"

Hitomi gaped in disbelief.

 _"Three days?! That long?"_

That was going to be tough.

* * *

That's it for today.

 **To Arrow-chan3:** Yeah, that's basically it. Maybe people should keep her away from the kitchen XD. Thank you for reviewing and I hope you liked this chapter!

 **To SoulXHunter:** Thank you for reviewing! I hope you liked this chapter too. I'm sorry if you felt Hitomi as a suporting character, like you said. I'm doing my best for not making her a Mary Sue, but I don't want her to turn into an Anti-Sue either. However, I'll work harder to put her a little above :)

Well, see you soon!


	7. Tower x Unwanted x Cross or Circle?

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Tricky Tower x Unwanted person x Cross or circle?**

They all saw the man who tried to climb down the wall being taken away by the birds, maybe for food.

"Maybe, we shouldn't try that," Hitomi suggested.

No windows, no stairs, no climbing... The options were becoming less and less.

"There must be a door somewhere," the girl suggested.

"Yeah," Kurapika agreed. "We'd better spread out to find the door, if we don't want to fall behind the others."

They spread out, searching for the door. Meanwhile, the people were decreasing and the girl couldn't help but frown at that.

She tapped the floor with her foot as she walked. After a while, one of them seemed to budge with her touch.

Hitomi kneeled down next to it and stared at it.

"Did you find any?" Gon asked.

"Yeah, there's one," she answered.

"And there's more," Killua added, taping some others. "They are seven of them."

Hitomi smiled slightly. There were more than necessary. Gon called over her brother and Leorio and they arrived little before that.

Leorio kneeled down to the door. He opened it, but it closed itself shortly after.

"It seems like it has a self lock function," Kurapika noted. "We have to find other doors."

"Damn! One door per person," Leorio complained, "and it's only good once."

"Also, we should assume that each door leads to a different route." he said, quietly.

"This isn't the time to calmly analyze the situation!" Leorio shouted, annoyed. "We don't even know if there are enough doors for all of us!"

"There are," Hitomi jumped into the conversation. "We found six more like that one. More than enough."

She pointed at each one of them.

"Seven doors located so close to each other..." Leorio said. "There's something fishy about it..."

"Some of them might be traps," Kurapika concluded.

"So luck is part of your skill, huh?" he looked at Kurapika.

"Don't hold it against anyone even if you fall into a trap," Killua said.

"Let's decide the order of picking a door-" Hitomi suggested.

"W-Wait!" Kurapika said. "It's just that..."

Hitomi scratched the back of her neck, still waiting for his brother's sentence, but he didn't spoke. Then she realized that Gon was staring at her... Killua was too... So was Leorio...

She looked up at Kurapika. He was staring at her in worry. She blushed in embarrassment.

"Whoa, Blondie!" she said, once she saw him. "I'm aware of your 'brother's instincts' or whatever, but calm down!"

"But-!" he replied.

"I'm old enough to take care of myself!" she furrowed her eyebrows, annoyed, "Come on! I'm already twelve!"

"Okay," he sighed. "Take care then."

"Yeah, yeah..." she murmured, her cheeks still red. "Let's get over with it then."

They all stretched their arms.

"Paper, rock, scissor!"

After that, they all stood in front of a door.

"Let's all jump in on the count of three," Gon said.

"We'll be apart from each other from here," Kurapika said.

"See you on the ground!" Leorio said.

"You better not get lost, guys." Hitomi joked.

"Yeah," Killua said, simply.

Hitomi looked at the door in determination.

"One, two, three!"

They all jumped in the air and fell into the entrance.

The girl's feet collided with the floor and looked around, despite there were just darkness. She stayed there, waiting for the trap to take activate.

However, the lights turned on. She found herself looking at everyone again. Killua, Gon and she grinned at each other.

"That was a brief separation," Kurapika said.

"Such a pity," Hitomi joked.

They noticed a table with seven watches. The five of them got closer to it and found a sign.

 _"The Path of the Majority Rules._

 _The seven of you must find your way to the goal by using 'Majority Rules'."_

They put themselves the timers and noticed that they had two buttons, one with a circle and another with a cross.

"Does that mean, unless we get another two people down here we can't get out of this room?" Kurapika asked.

"That's right," a voice said. "There are many routes in this tower. Each one has different requirements. You guys got 'The Path of the Majority Rules'. It's a tough course in which you must cooperate with each other. I wish you all good luck."

And the voice shut up. Kurapika look at his clock.

"The remaining time is 71 hours and 18 minutes... We just have to wait."

Hitomi sighed, before sitting on the ground. Killua and Gon did the same next to her.

"We'll be six," Hitomi said, after a while.

"What do you mean?" Killua asked.

"Remember the door that Leorio opened back then? I have the feeling that was the seventh that guides us here," she explained. "But it won't open again."

"But, didn't he said 'Majority Rule'?" Gon asked. "What happens if three of us choose one option and three the other?"

"Then we flip a coin," Hitomi said, with a straight face.

"Really?" Gon asked with wide eyes.

"No, Gon. She is kidding," Kurapika sat next to them. Hitomi chuckled and Gon pouted. "She doesn't really know."

Killua sighed, before placing his arms behind his head.

It would take a while...

* * *

 _Tap, tap, tap..._

"Leorio," Hitomi began.

 _Tap, tap, tap..._

" _Leorio._ "

 _Tap, tap, tap..._

"Leorio!" she called him, louder

"What?" he replied.

 _Tap, tap, tap..._

She released a long sight.

"For goodness sake, Leorio, stop _pacing around!_ " she exclaimed, "After two hours it became really, _really_ annoying!"

He stopped and started to think.

"Two hours? Maybe everyone has taken a different route down already," he said, "The ones still remaining on top must be really stupid."

Right then, they heard the entrance opening. They all looked up.

"It seems like that stupid one was arrived," Killua said.

The person landed in front of them and they gaped at his form. He was someone they sure didn't want to see...

It was Tonpa.

Hitomi facepalmed. _"Damn it..."_

"Looks like everyone is here," Tonpa said, laughing nervously.

"I don't want to do this 'Majority Rules' thing with you!" Leorio complained

The man put himself the timer and pressed a button. The wall moved.

"All right!" he said, punching the air. "Let's go!"

"Don't 'all right' us when you got here last." Leorio murmured.

"Man, and I thought that Leorio and Killua were the most annoying people in the world," Hitomi's eyebrow twitched.

A door appeared with a sign on it. They had to choose wherever they wanted to open it or not. They voted, and realized that there was someone who pressed the 'X', the option 'No'.

"Who the hell choose the 'X' button?" Leorio asked.

"Ah, sorry, sorry," Tonpa scratched the back of his head. "I pressed it by mistake."

And Leorio started to fight with the guy.

"Forget about it. Let's go," Gon said. "The door opened anyway."

"We've wasted two hours already," Kurapika told him. "I don't want to waste any more time quarreling."

"That's right," Hitomi said. "Even if he keeps objecting all the way, we'll be fine as long as the rest of us are cooperating, right?"

"And if he still gets in our way, then..." Killua smirked.

Tonpa flinched.

"Well, all right. Let's get going," Leorio reluctantly let him go.

They walked away and the door closed itself behind them. After a while, another sign showed, making them decide if they wanted to go right or left.

Hitomi pressed the button almost instantly. Tonpa saw what she put and glanced at Kurapika, the same. Then, he picked right.

And the girl's eyebrow twitched when she realized that Tonpa just copied them.

The sign showed two votes for 'left' and four for 'right'. That's why the right door opened itself.

"To the right? Usually in case like this people choose left, don't they?" Leorio asked, shocked. "Actually, I don't feel comfortable unless I choose left in a situation like this-"

Kurapika sighed and pushed him in the way.

"It's true that according to behavioral studies when people are lost or when selecting an unknown route, more often than not, they tend to go left," he explained.

"I've heard of that too," Killua said.

Hitomi nodded. Leorio, however, was confused.

"Hey, wait a minute! The numbers don't add up," he said. "Which one did you guys press?"

"Right," Kurapika, Killua, Hitomi and Tonpa said at the same time.

"Look, guys-" Leorio started to complain.

"People are likely to choose left. A proctor should know that, and would make a more difficult trap on the left path," Hitomi said.

"That's why we choose that." Tonpa concluded.

Hitomi glared at the man and raised an eyebrow. _"Yeah, right..."_

"We're simple minded all right. Right, Gon?" Leorio said.

 _"So I'm at the same level as Leorio..."_ Gon flinched.

Finally, they arrived at a room which had a ring in the middle of the nothing. In the other side, they could see six cloaked people with cuffs in their hands.

One of them took off his cloak and his cuffs and started to talk.

"We've been hired to test you applicants!" he said. "You must fight the six of us here, and since originally you were supposed to be seven, we have a match won now."

Hitomi growled softly.

"The fight is one-on-one! You can fight only once!" he continued. "You can pick your turns. You can pass by winning the majority of matches, meaning four or more wins. You can fight anyway you want. There will be no draws! When one side admits defeat, the other side is deemed the winner! Decide if you will take on this challenge or not by voting. If yes, press the 'O'. If no, press the 'X'."

And, after Leorio glared at Tonpa, they all voted 'Yes'. Right after then, they heard a beep and a red '1' appeared in the opposite side, because of their missing member.

"All right. The first one from our side will be me!" the man said. "Who will be fighting from your side?"

"I'll go," Gon said to his group.

"No, I should go," Kurapika said. "He seems like the type to fight with brute strength. If you fight him straight on, you'll be a disadvantage, Gon."

"Wait a minute... No. I will be the one going," Hitomi objected. "If you fight, you'll base your strategy in the sole suspicion that he is just physically strong. Therefore, you'll do something stupid."

"If you are scared, I'll go," Killua said.

"Who is scared, Whitey?" she asked, annoyed.

Killua was about to say something else, but he was cut before that.

"Wait!" Tonpa said. "I'll go."

They all looked at him in disbelief.

It was just... _No way._

"You've gotta be joking!" Leorio said. "A petty scoundrel like you is no match against him."

"I know all of you don't fully trust me, right?" Tonpa said.

"Not at all," Leorio and Hitomi said in unison.

In a normal situation, she would be surprised. She had just thought the same thing that Leorio...

Oh, well.

"Well, listen!" he held his hands up in defense. "Up ahead, we may face a situation in which the score is tied. If you don't trust me, can you risk letting me fight the tiebreaker?"

"Fair enough," Hitomi admitted.

"I see his point," Killua added. "Why don't you let him do it?"

"You offered yourself to be the first one to fight," Leorio told him, annoyed. "So you better not lose."

"Just watch," he said, confident...

Almost _too_ confident.

A bridge appeared, letting Tonpa walk into the arena. The opponent did the same thing.

"Well, let's decide the way of the match," he proposed. "I suggest a death match."

He thought about it for more like five minutes. Hitomi's eyebrow twitched.

"Please, accept it!" Hitomi shouted, jokingly. "I'm begging you!"

His brother looked at her in a disapprovingly manner.

"What?" she asked, grinning. Kurapika just shook his head.

"Alright, I accept your challenge," Tonpa said, solemnly.

They four glared at her, she raised her hands in defense.

"I was kidding!" she defended herself. "He decided to suicide alone, it's not my fault."

As soon as the mode of battle was decided, the man launched towards him in an attack. They all saw Tonpa placing his hands on the floor to do something really, _really_...

Really _unexpected._

"I give up!"

Just... what?

The faces of his companions fell in disbelief.

"Wh-What did... you say?" Tonpa's enemy managed to say.

"I give up," he scratched the back of her head. "I'm defeated."

Hitomi facepalmed, seeing the '2' appearing in the other side. So... What were all of them worried about just now?

Leorio grabbed Tonpa by his collar once he arrived at their side, really pissed off.

"Now I'm convinced!" he yelled, letting him go. "You are a helpless jerk who only gets in others' way!"

"If we win two more fights, you'll lose," the man told them. "You can't go ahead or back. You'll have to spend the rest of your time here until the time limit."

"So, in order for us to win, we must win four out of five fights." Kurapika concluded.

They all looked at Tonpa, who flinched at their intense gaze.

"You got us, old man," Killua said.

" _Coward_ old man," Hitomi corrected.

Tonpa, however, smirked. He looked at them.

"Yeah, I'm a coward," he admitted. "That's how I've always been. And that's how I'll always remain."

"I figured it out, thank you very much," Hitomi said, annoyed. "Get to the point already."

"That's how I have survived!" he continued. "Listen, unlike you, guys, I have no intention of becoming a Hunter. What I want from the Hunter Exam is not to pass but to get any excitement. I stay close to the veterans and watch what they do to hone my ability to sense danger. That way I can ensure my safety, then I get to watch the ultimate show of death. A scene of hell where the dreams of young people are devoured. Gradually, watching such moments became very amusing for me and I began playing actives roles in dashing the dreams of newbies. I found this far more exciting in life than becoming a Hunter."

The girl just felt sick by listening to him. She wanted to puke... It was disgusting.

"As for this year's Exam, it's about time for me to withdraw, I don't care if I fail," he continued. "However, this is 'The Path of the Majority Rules'. If the five of you work hard, you can keep on going with 5 to 1 odds. It's not so bad after all, is it?"

Hitomi's fists clenched, staring only at her feet.

"That's awful," Kurapika said.

"Damn you! I won't forget this!" Leorio exclaimed. "I'm going to take you down to the bottom of this tower."

"Bastard... playing with other's lives? Don't you know how important they are?" she murmured.

"You're just like a computer bug," Killua said, approaching him in a dangerous way. "And I hate games that have bugs."

Tonpa stepped back in fear. However, Gon's naivety saved his life.

"That's right! Tonpa-san is right," he said, happily. "We can keep on going if we maintain 5 against 1 odds. We can, without having to fight among ourselves!"

And like that, Tonpa's life was saved.

They looked into the arena, where the new fighter walked. He did not look very strong... but ...

"It's my turn!" Gon shouted.

After that, a young man faced Gon and agreed to fight in a game in which each one of them had a one whose fire blew off first was the loser.

He showed them two candles, one obviously longer than the other. He said that the group had to decide which one Gon was going to use by Majority Rules.

"I'll bet there's a trap set in the longer one!" Leorio said.

"Certainly, it's normal to think that way," Kurapika said. "On the contrary, there could be a trap set in the shorter one."

"But, if you start thinking about it-"

"Yes, it's endless," he replied. "We're faced with a Disparate Choice. When you're faced with two choices with clearly different conditions, it raises suspicions and you inevitably start to second guess yourself. On top of that, the psychological impact of making a wrong choice is a lot worse than in a situation where the two choices appear even."

The convict however sat down in the floor.

"You can take your time to decide," he said, making the girl narrow her eyes in suspicion.

Hitomi crossed her arms and leaned her back against the wall, sighing tiredly. Killua stared at her, curiously.

"But, something still troubles me..." she murmured.

"What are you thinking?" Killua asked.

"It's just... what if both of the candles are just the same?" she said.

The four of them looked at her, with a serious expression in their faces.

"I mean, they want us to waste as time as possible. The guy is too confident, he doesn't show any nervousness, even if our chances of guessing the 'right one' are still of 50 percent. Also, he didn't say anything about one being different from the other," she explained. "It could just be that they both either have or don't have a trap."

"That's true," Kurapika said. "So, no matter how long we think about it, we'll never guess the right one.

She nodded.

"Then..." Leorio said, nervously. "Which one? I think-"

"Gon, you decide!" Kurapika shouted, cutting him off. "We'll be abide by your decision. Let's go with your natural instincts rather than talk among ourselves."

"I agree," Killua said.

"I can decide?" Gon grinned, they nodded. "Got it. Then I pick the longer one."

They looked at him in disbelief.

"You pick the longer one, right?" the prisoner said. "Why?"

"Because the longer one will last longer, of course!"

Their faces fell once again...

 _"Gon and his simple-mindedness..."_ Hitomi sighed.

They had to accept his decision. As soon as Gon turned his candle on, the flame grew, it was a trap. Burned by it, the boy accidentally dropped it, but the fire didn't turn off.

He grinned, before running to the man. He blow the candle, and the match ended.

"I won," he smiled widely.

And a huge '1' appeared in their side.

"Alright, I'll go," Kurapika said and walked into the ring.

Kurapika's enemy retired his cloak and revealed his monstrous appearance, and nineteen hearts tattooed in his chest.

"What a macho man!" Leorio shouted.

"What a Frankenstein, more likely," Hitomi said, sarcastically.

The 'man' - or so he was supposed to be - pointed at his tattooed chest.

"I've killed nineteen people," he said. "But it was bugging me. So, I'm glad the twentieth person has showed up."

"Decide the rules of the match," Kurapika said, cutting off his speech. "I'll follow."

"Then let's have a death match in which we fight until one of us either admits defeat or dies," he proposed. "However, don't think I'll stop beating you just because you decide to admit defeat halfway through the match."

"Alright, that's fine."

Kurapika wasn't affected at all. He just took off his tabard and left in the floor, getting ready to fight.

"Take a good look and see how fierce I am!" he shouted, jumping in the air.

He tried to hit him, but Kurapika avoided it. His fist made a huge crater in the floor, but that wasn't the thing that surprised them.

Intentionally, 'Frankenstein' let all of them see the huge tattoo he had in his back. A huge spider with twelve legs...

That was _the_ Spider.

* * *

That's all for today.

Thanks to **SoulXHunter** for reviewing! I'm sorry, but you will have to wait for a little before I introduce Hitomi's Hatsu in this story... However, I hope you found this chapter as enjoyable as the last one :)

See you later!


	8. The Eyes x The Heart x Fifty Hours!

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Fire in the Eyes x Heart in the Hand x Fifty Hours in the Room!**

Killua found himself staring at Hitomi, her eyes were red. He couldn't help but remember the time when they had been in Tonpa's trap. Her eyes, that time, were like that...

Like there was fire in them.

However, it lasted a minute or so. They turned violet again and she narrowed them.

 _"That tattoo..."_ she thought. _"It's totally plain."_

"What's that?" Gon asked.

Leorio tried to keep his cool.

"It's a proof that he's a member of the Genei Ryodan," he replied.

"The ones that massacred Kurapika's and Hitomi's comrades?" Gon asked.

"Yeah. The notorious group of killers that Kurapika seeks revenge against," Leorio said "To think that he's part of the Ryodan..."

"That's the problem," Hitomi said all of sudden. "He is _not_ from the Genei Ryodan."

"Eh?" Gon and Leorio said at the same time.

She remained quiet.

"What's the matter? Are you too scared to speak?" 'Frankenstein' asked Kurapika. "I'm one of the Four Devas of the Genei Ryodan. They call me Majitani, the Destroyer!"

 _"Fear? It's the least thing he has..."_ Hitomi thought

"Kurapika is angry," Gon suddenly said, Leorio and Tonpa looked at him, confused.

"Yeah," the girl nodded. "He is furious."

He raised his head, letting him see something that made him shake in fear. Kurapika walked towards him, and Majitani stepped back.

"S-Stop!" he said, raising his fist. "Or I will give you another-"

However, Kurapika grabbed Majitani's face. He jumped, dragging him along.

"Okay!" he said. "I g-!"

He didn't finish his sentence. Kurapika punched him, making him collide with a loud thud, unconscious. Kurapika glared at him.

"Three things. One: The proof that one belongs to the Genei Ryodan is the member's number carved into the spider. Two: They don't bother to keep count of the number of people they've killed. Three: Don't ever speak of the Genei Ryodan again or I _will_ kill you."

He turned around, letting all of them to see his bright red eyes. The Scarlet Eyes.

"Are you alright?" Leorio asked once Kurapika arrived at their side.

"Yes, I'm not injured," he replied.

"Actually, is it alright for us to be around you right now?"

Hitomi facepalmed. Kurapika, with his eyes in their normal color, sat in the floor.

"I knew that he wasn't much a fighter just by looking at him," he said.

"Is that so?" Leorio replied, surprised. "His look is intimidating enough for anybody, right?"

"For a horror movie, yeah," Hitomi joked with a straight face. "Frankenstein-san would be a great antagonist on it."

"I didn't even get any chills when I looked at him," Gon grinned.

"It was so obvious from the start," Killua rolled his eyes. "He was bluffing and didn't even have the guts to hit anyone."

Leorio was stunned at this revelation.

"I knew his tattoo was fake but the moment I saw the spider, everything turned red..." Kurapika said.

"Again?" Hitomi said, joking to enlighten his humor. "We have to do something with your arachnophobia then."

The others were looking at them in confusion.

"When he sees a spider, even an ordinary one, his rage builds and he becomes a different person," Hitomi explained briefly.

Both Leorio and Gon paled at the thought of it.

"I suppose that just proves that my anger has yet to fade away," Kurapika said. "In that sense, I should be glad about it."

Hitomi stared at him for a few seconds, before sighing.

"We better not let Kurapika see any spiders..." Gon whispered to Leorio, who nodded.

Leorio took a step closer, declaring that he would be the next one. The man of the other side nevertheless told him that the match was not over. Majitani had not died not admitted defeat.

Kurapika refused to fight again.

"I'll leave it to him," he said, "When he regains consciousness, he'll choose his own fate. I have no intention of taking any action!"

"Hey, do you want me to do it?" Killua asked. "You've never killed a person, have you? Are you scared?"

Kurapika glared at him for a few seconds. "I've never thought about killing in terms of being scared or not. Besides, his is a one-on-one match. There's no need to interfere."

"I see. But you are surprisingly selfish."

Hitomi knew that Killua was right, but also saw Kurapika's point. He'd never killed a person, and he didn't want to do it now.

"So, you won't kill him," she started. "How about kicking him? Making him wake up and admit defeat?"

"No," he just declared. "I won't hurt someone who lost his fight."

"Listen, Blondie," she said. "If you don't do something now, _you_ will be the one losing the fight. Just wake him up or something, you don't have to hurt him! What are you gonna do?"

He didn't say anything else. She sighed and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"Silence... yeah, good idea," she said, sarcastically. "You're just too stubborn..."

They argued for a long time, but Kurapika didn't change his mind. All of them were forced to wait a long, _long_ time.

After some hours, Hitomi sighed. There was something that troubled her.

"That man could be already dead," Killua spoke her thoughts.

"Yeah, I've been thinking that for a while now," she said.

Leorio stood up and pointed to the other side.

"Hey! Let me check if that man is still alive or dead already!"

"Then how about we make a bet?" the man who fighted Tonpa - for a lack of a better word - asked.

He proposed Leorio to bet time and after a while, he accepted. First of all, he bet ten hours that he's still alive.

"Huh? Didn't you suspect that he was already dead?" Gon asked.

And Leorio went to confirm that.

"You are more intelligent than you look, old man," Hitomi chuckled. Gon looked at her, confused. "If he loses this bet and Majitani is dead, Kurapika wins the match. However, if he bets he is dead and he isn't we'd lose both counts."

Leorio checked him and realized that he was still alive. They won two hours.

"This is not good," Kurapika murmured. "That man may lie unconscious forever."

"What do you mean?" Gon asked, confused.

"Is possible," Killua agreed. "When that man approached the lying man a minute ago I thought he was dead. But rather... instead of him being dead... "

"It's easy. For them, it's better he is alive and unconscious," Hitomi explained to Gon. "If he just lies there for the rest of the time, they can shorten their sentences seventy-two years without doing anything."

After that, Leorio asked him to gamble whether Majitani was unconscious or not. Then man bet yes, and Leorio carried Majitani and threatened to let him fall.

"If he's really unconscious, he'll fall down and die," he said. "If he falls and dies, Kurapika loses the match for breaking the rules."

"Alright. I'll agree to your condition but I want to make a change," he said. "I'll bet all forty hours on him that he wakes up!"

And Leorio was about to let him go.

"Wait. Don't let go of me! I'm up! I'm conscious!" he yelled, before starting to run away. "I admit my defeat. To hell with the amnesty, I'm much safer to be in a prison!"

And now they had two wins. A woman walked to the arena and challenged Leorio to gamble time again.

"Well, _Doctor_..." she said, almost too sweetly. "I would like for you to bet whether I am a man or a woman."

And after the woman told him he could examine her after losing, Hitomi raised an eyebrow.

"Leorio will bet that she is a he," Kurapika said, disgusted.

"Yep," Killua and Hitomi nodded at the same time.

Gon was confused.

"Ten hours says you're a man!" Leorio said.

"As I thought," Kurapika raised an eyebrow.

"Figures..." Hitomi facepalmed, irritated.

"Pervert old man!" Killua murmured.

The woman smirked.

"I'm sorry, you lose," she said. "I'm a woman."

"W-What?" he looked... a little happy. "I don't believe it!"

Hitomi shook her head.

"How phony can you get?" Kurapika murmured.

"At least _try_ to look upset, perverted old man!" she shouted.

She told him to check that up and Hitomi sighed, before looking at Killua's back. Smiling evilly, she put her hands in front of his eyes.

"Wh-What do you think you're doing?!" he yelled.

"This is not suitable for all ages!" she joked.

"That's right," she heard.

A pair of hands covered her eyes, much in her dismay. Once they were taken off, she saw Kurapika smiling at her, nervously.

Killua glared at her, she sheepishly smiled.

Back on the arena, it was Leorio's turn to make a bet.

 _"That would work a lot better with Kurapika..."_ he thought, looking at Kurapika.

"W-Why is he looking at me like that?" the boy flinched.

* * *

After a long time, Leorio lost in a Rock, Paper and Scissors game, because the woman psychology, even though Gon told him to use scissors...

Anyway, they ended up losing fifty hours and winning a loss in their side.

"Let's see... who still hasn't gone from our side?" Leorio asked.

"That would be me," Killua said. "I was getting so bored of waiting I almost fell asleep."

"I haven't gone either," Hitomi added. "But I think I'll let you go first. The best always go last."

"As if," he rolled his eyes.

But then, they realized that Leorio was looking at them, with a surprised expression.

"I really should have won, no matter what!" he exclaimed. "Of the others matches requires the use of a brain, we're goners!"

They both looked at him.

"This guy's getting on my nerves!" Hitomi said to Gon and Kurapika, who laughed nervously.

"I don't wanna hear it from someone who just lost in the match that did require the use of brain!" Killua argued, "Sure, I admit I'll probably lose if I have to answer a bunch of math questions."

"Don't worry! No matter what kinda match your opponent picks, I'm sure you can do it, Killua!" Gon encouraged.

"Gon..."

"Just make sure you throw rock first!"

Hitomi facepalmed, _again._

"Just don't pick Rock, Paper and Scissors!" Leorio said.

"As if!"

The man showed himself, he was Johness the Dissector. The worst serial killer in the whole story of Zaban.

Even though his group pleaded him not to go, he went and stood in front of him.

It was a game for him, anyway.

"So, what kinda fight is it gonna be?" he asked.

"A fight?" Johness talked. "I think you got the wrong idea, the only thing that's gonna happen here is me slaughtering you. I don't care about the Exam or getting my sentence reduced. I just wanna dig my fingers into your flesh, that's all. All you have to do is scream and cry out."

"Alright," Killua replied, uninterested. "So, whoever dies loses the game."

Johness stretched his hand to Killua, but he just took - or so it looked like - two steps and stayed behind him.

Blood slowly poured in the criminal's chest and he turned around to the boy, who was smirking evilly.

Killua was holding his still beating heart.

He tried to get his heart back, but Killua used his claws to shatter his heart and, with it, his hopes of living. Not long after, Johness fell, lifeless, into the ground.

"Well..." Hitomi said to his stunned brother. "He is from a family of elite assassins after all."

"What?!" Tonpa asked, a little scared. "From elite assassins?!"

"Yeah, the Zoldyck family!" Gon told him.

Killua arrived at their side, and Tonpa backed off in fright. Hitomi shook his head at his action.

"Killua," Kurapika spoke. "How did you learn a skill like that?"

"I wouldn't even call that a skill really. All I did is reach out and grab it," he said, making his claws grow. "I had to manipulate my body a little to make it easier to do."

They all paled at it. At least he was at their side.

Hitomi looked at the ring, her opponent was arriving first than her. He was, surprisingly, as old as Kurapika. He had red hair and black eyes, and looked just... too tiny.

However, his aura showed how dangerous he could be.

"I'm jealous," Killua admitted. "You have the good one."

"Huh?" Gon was confused. "He doesn't look strong."

When the others looked at the convict, they gaped in disbelief.

"No way... is him?!" Leorio shouted. "Give up, Hitomi. Don't you dare to fight him!"

"I dare, and I will."

Kurapika placed a hand over his sister's shoulder.

"Don't do this, please," he said, pale.

"I will," she said. "Did you stop when Leorio asked you to do it?"

"This guy is different!" Kurapika exclaimed. "He is far more dangerous!"

She let out a long sigh.

"Let me, I want to do this. Do it for me," she asked, but Kurapika didn't answer. "Do it from Pairo and the others then!"

His eyes opened in surprise at that sentence and he lost his grip on her. Taking advantage of that, she released herself and ran towards the arena.

And the path disappeared again before he could do anything else.

"Hitomi!" he shouted.

"Don't worry, Blondie!" she smirked. "I won't die that easily!"

She turned around and faced his opponent. Her grin disappeared and stared at him with a serious expression.

"I've read about you. You're Peter The Reaper," she told him. "A psycho murderer that have killed at least 100 people, most of them girls. They all were about eight to thirteen years old. You dismembered them with you... uh... what was it?"

He just showed her huge, _huge_ sickle. Leorio shouted something, but she didn't paid him attention at all.

"Yeah, that!" she grinned. "Oh, wait, that's why you are called 'The Reaper'?"

"Hey," he spoke for the first time, raising an eyebrow. "Aren't you afraid? I don't look like that, but I'm strong you know."

"I know you are strong, but I don't get anything good from being afraid." she replied. "So, the one who surrenders or dies loses?"

"I like you, girl," Peter smirked. "I agree with that, let's go."

The boy swinged around the sickle and she avoided it. From the right, from the above, from the left, she avoided the swing by jumping or moving her body.

She jumped once again and did a headstand, before standing on her feets and looking at him fiercely. She smirked.

"Good, let's stop playing then," he grinned evilly.

Peter disappeared from Hitomi's sight. She froze, once she felt his cold fingers in her neck. He was staring at her hair, playing a bit with it.

"You really care for your hair, don't you?" he said. "It's not damaged, I see..."

"Get away!" she turned around to punch it, but he vanished again.

And when she noticed where he was, Hitomi felt herself being lifted by her own hair. She couldn't help but put her own hands on it, trying to make it less painful.

Then he noticed she had an earning, which had been hidden in her blonde hair before he pulled it. It was like a drop-shaped ruby.

"What's this, girl?" he asked, making her flinch. He stretched his hand to grab it, "Looks interesting..."

"Get your filthy fingers out of it!" she yelled. "You sick sickle-boy!"

In a flash, she grabbed her knifes and swung them around. She broke free from Peter's grasp.

The boy was confused at first, but then looked at the ones in the rival group. The blonde one, her brother... was wearing the same earring, only that it was in his right ear.

He smirked.

"So, you care about them, don't you?" he said.

She flinched, aware of what he was talking about.

"But, you know what? I can make you _all_ stay with me in the same room the fifty hours you have to be here."

Her eyes widened, as her mind tried to pocess his words. All of her comrades flinched, stunned at it.

"You can't do that!" Leorio shouted from where they were.

"Of course I can," he smirked. "I'm your examiner after all."

Hitomi clenched her fists and looked down.

"I love children's cries, and now there's three of them," he said, happily. "Oh, wait, but then there's this boy and these two elder men... Oh, well. It will be enjoyable anyway."

And Hitomi started to shake, her eyes being covered by her own blonde bangs.

"Oh, are you crying?" he asked, holding the sickle closer to her. "Louder, please. I can't _hear_ you."

"Don't you..." she murmured.

He looked at her, in confusion.

"It's like Kurapika's match," Gon commented. "Hitomi's angry."

"Yeah," Killua nodded.

"Like Kurapika?!" Leorio shouted, a little scared.

And Tonpa shook in fear. Kurapika didn't say anything. He didn't take his gaze out of her sister silhouette.

 _"Please be okay..."_

Peter continued to stare at the girl, in confusion.

"Don't you dare..." she raised her head, "to touch them!"

He saw her eyes, red ones, like the time when Majitani fighted the other guy. Right after that, she vanished from his sight.

"You like the feeling?" she asked, before kicking him right in his back.

By pure reflex, he let go of his sickle. She took it and directed it to his chest.

Hitomi started to walk, dragging him along. They stopped, right in the corner of the arena...

His eyes opened in shock as he realized that he was defeated.

"Give up," she sentenced. "or I will kill you."

His gaze softened and sighed.

"Oh, well..." he declared. "My loss."

She let him go and threw the sickle right in the emptiness. Peter glared at her and she grinned, with her once again violet eyes.

"Time to pick another nickname, I guess," she said.

Back at their side, Kurapika ran up to her.

"What?" she raised an eyebrow at his glare. "I won, didn't I?"

The boy's gaze softened, before sighing. Without advice, she found herself being embraced by his older brother.

"H-Hey!" she flushed in embarrassment when she noticed everyone staring at them. "Not in front of people! It's embarrassing!"

They all laughed, beside Tonpa. The guy was still keeping his distance...

Killua's claws...

Hitomi and Kurapika's eyes...

He was going to die. Tonpa was positive about it.

* * *

Right after the fifty hours, the group started to run. After another eight hours, they arrived at another door. They have to vote if they wanted to open the door or not.

One person voted 'No', irritating Leorio. He turned around and grabbed Tonpa by the collar of his shirt.

"I'm really had it up to here with all your trying to screw with us!" he said. "You got that?!"

"Wait a second," he said. "I pressed 'O' too."

"You are lying!"

"It wasn't him!" Gon said. "I'm sorry, Leorio. I pressed 'X' by mistake."

Leorio sighed, letting Tonpa go and turning around.

"Wait, I think I deserve a proper apology from you," he said.

"It's because you've been doing stuff to make yourself suspicious," Leorio said. "I don't feel like I need to apologize."

"I was the only one who's been hindering everyone," Tonpa said. "Who's fault was that we were forced to waste fifty hours doing nothing? You're the one who made the critical mistake."

"What was that?!"

Hitomi sighed.

"Shut up, Tonpa. You're not in position to talk," Hitomi said annoyed. "Leorio at least made Kurapika's fight valid and, without it, we wouldn't have made it here. What have you done for us? _Giving up..._ Yeah, you are really helpful."

"Even Hitomi is defending me," Leorio grinned, ruffling the girl's hair, much in her dismay. "I must be important then."

"You old man..." she murmured, her eyebrow twitching.

They entered into the room and looked at two doors, one had a huge 'X' on it and the other an 'O'.

"Attention, please. You've come to the last fork along the path of Majority Rules." the examiner voice echoed in the room. "This will be the last of your long journey with the Majority Rules, but of course you'll have to choose one of the two doors here. One path is long, difficult, but all six of you can take it. If you take this one, push 'O'. For short and easy path, push 'X'. If this path is chosen, the door will open only when three of you have been handcuffed to the wall. Those three applicants won't be able to move from here until time has run out."

Hitomi put her finger on the 'O' button, but before she could have done anything, the proctor spoke again.

"For your information, the path behind the 'O' door will take at least 45 hours to complete. Whereas the path behind the 'X' door will take three minutes. So, will you vote 'X' or 'O'? Let the majority rule."

The girl frowned and glanced at the weapons in the wall. It was evident that they wanted them to fight each other.

They all remained quiet, the tension was so thick that you could cut it through with a knife. Man, not even Tonpa dared to talk!

"I'm gonna push 'X'," Leorio said all of sudden. "And I have no intention of being one of the three left here either."

"Well, I'm pressing the 'O' button," Gon said. "We've come this far after all. I wanna pass this with all five of us together."

"Hey, hey. We have less than one hour left now. We obviously gotta take the shorter path," Killua added. "The only question left is how to decide the three of us that goes. I have no intention of ending the game yet. If no one backs off... we just have to fight each other."

"Wait a minute... This could be a trap, you know?" Tonpa said. "Just think about it. The short and easy path sounds really fishy."

"That sounds real coming for you," Leorio glared at him. "I know exactly what you're thinking. If we decide on 'X' and three of us were to be left behind, one would be you for sure."

Tonpa flinched and composed himself little after.

"And just who do you think the others gonna be?" he asked "If it comes down to a fight I don't stand much of a chance and I'll be left behind. But who do you think are gonna be the others? Gon? Kurapika? Hitomi? Killua? If I remember correctly you've been with Gon, Hitomi and Kurapika before the Exams started. So I guess that makes Killua the odd man out and with him another of your friends. But I wonder if that would go smoothly."

"Stop it, you two!" Hitomi shouted. "We are a little out of time, if you don't mind!"

"And what about you two?" Leorio asked her and her brother.

"'O', of course," she replied.

"Me too," Kurapika said. "Like Gon said, there might be another way out of this."

It looked like 'O' won four to two. However, Tonpa suddenly changed his vote and choose 'X'... a tie.

He chained himself after all, making Hitomi and Killua narrow their eyes in suspicion.

Gon and Leorio started to argue, no one changing his mind about the voting.

"That's enough, both of you stop it right now! While you stand around arguing with each other, our time is ticking away!" Kurapika snapped. "Besides, this is the path of the Majority Rules. If it's decided, I will fight for the short way. However, know that it'd be useless to hope for us fighting each other and take advantage of the situation. In other words whoever tries to reap the benefit of aftermatch will not succeed."

"Uh-oh, it's seems like they are scolding you," Hitomi chuckled, before looking at Tonpa.

"Wh-What do you mean?" he asked.

"What made you think you could fool us?" Killua said. "You should lock your handcuffs properly."

Angered, Tonpa freed himself from the chains and took an axe. He tried to attack Leorio, but missed for a bit and it hit the floor.

Gon jumped in the middle of the two and, somehow, managed to keep himself alive and Tonpa to press 'O'.

The door opened, they had forty minutes left.

"Now, what do we do?" Leorio asked.

"We use this!" Gon said, happily holding an axe.

"Gon, you are brilliant!" Hitomi said, going to get another one.

She ran there, and together with Gon, started to make their way to the short way.

"I see," Kurapika said, and explained to a confused Leorio. "If there's no way, we'll just make one."

Taking turns, they all hit the wall. After a long time, they managed to make a hole on it.

But they had less than three minutes.

"That means we aren't gonna make it?!" Tonpa said, furious.

Meanwhile the others were still fighting, Hitomi got closer to the path. Something caught her eye about its form.

 _"A downhill..."_

She looked around to find something of use and made eye contact with Killua. The boy raised an eyebrow when she stared at his skateboard and smiled to herself.

"That's it, Killua!" she called him. "Lend us your skateboard for a bit, please?"

* * *

Thirty seconds left and... nothing.

Three more...

Two...

One...

A strange self-made vehicle arrived at the place, with six people on it.

 _Zero._

"Time is up!"

Hitomi released the breath she didn't know she was holding. They have arrived alive, in one piece and, on the top of that, _on time._

The main gate opened, letting all of them get out tower. It was nice to receive the sunlight once again.

"Hey, Hitomi!" Killua said, a little annoyed, while pointing at his skateboard. "Thanks to your master plan the wheels on my board are run down! What are you gonna do about it?"

"Say sorry?" she smiled in a sheepishly way. "Come on! It was the only way to escape, you should be grateful."

"Grateful?!"

She just laughed, nervously.

* * *

"We now have only the Fourth Phase and the Last Phase to go in this Hunter Exam," Lippo said. "About the Fourth Phase I'd like everyone to draw lots."

Lippo make a woman bring a box and everyone stared at it.

"There are as many cards in this box as remaining applicants. You'll each choose one in the order in which you escaped from the Trick Tower," he explained.

"Now then, please pick one, Hisoka-san," the woman said.

After a long, _long_ time, Hitomi reached the box. She sighed, before retiring one sole card. She walked out the line and looked at it.

"The card you just picked will have a number," Lippo said. "And those numbers correspond with the remaining applicants' ID numbers. This drawing has just determined the hunter and the hunted. In short, the objective of the Fourth Phase is to steal each other's ID badges."

 _"It will be tough..."_ the girl thought.

"The applicant whose badge ID number corresponds with the card you've picked is your target!" he continued. "In order to pass this phase, you'll need six points. The badge of your target is worth three points. Your own badge is also worth three points. So, if you can steal your target's badge and manage to keep your own, you'll pass the Fourth Phase. By the way, all other applicants' badges are worth one point. You can also get the six points you need that way."

Hitomi sighed and looked at her target once again.

She just wondered who was her depredator.

* * *

That's the end of this chapter!

I think that is the first time we see Hitomi fighting, so I sorry if I disapointed you in any aspect... However, this is just the beginning of the story, so she will become stronger than this. I'll do my best:)

Thanks to **Mr. Kohen** and **SoulXHunter** for leaving a review! Let's just hope you liked this chapter like the others :)

See you all later!


	9. Hunting x Talking x Between Bullets!

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Hunting x Talking x Walking Between Bullets!**

Hitomi found Killua and Gon sitting next to each other. Sighing, she made her way to them and sat down next to Killua.

They kept silent for a couple of minutes or so.

"So, what number did you draw?" Killua asked after a while.

"Well..." she murmured, unsure of what to say.

Both of the boys looked at her,feeling a bit nervous at her answer. She stared at them for a little, before striking her tongue.

"Idiots!" she chuckled. "It's not any of you."

They sighed in relief, before grinning too.

"You are not my targets," Killua said.

"You're not mine either," Gon replied.

She felt a little relieved after knowing that.

"Then, how about we show each other our cards on three?" Hitomi suggested.

They both nodded. After three seconds, they showed their target each other.

Both Hitomi and Killua paled after seeing Gon's card.

"Seriously?" Killua murmured.

"Yeah," Gon smiled in nervousness.

"Hisoka..." Hitomi commented. "What a rotten luck..."

Gon looked at his friends' cards.

"Number 199 and 80, who are they?" Gon asked.

"You don't know either?" he said, letting himself fall backwards and stayed in a head-first position. "It's not like I remember everyone else's badge numbers. I tried to find out right after the rules were explained, but everyone had hidden their badges already by then."

"Idiot," Hitomi sighed. "You should have tried to find out that right when you got the badge."

He shot off and got into a sitting position, looking at her.

"You know who is it?" he asked hopefully.

"Yeah, it's one of the Amori brothers," she replied. "I don't know which one of them, though."

Killua looked disappointed.

"Man, they are boring!" he complained, before looking at the card in Hitomi's hand. "And who is Number 80?"

"Siper, I think she is called like that," she said. "The woman with the rifle over there."

She looked towards the woman and the other two nodded.

"Even she is more interesting than _my_ target!" Killua complained.

They laughed and stayed in silence once again.

"Well, good luck to the three of us," Killua said.

"Yeah," Gon said.

"The same for you all," Hitomi said. "And Gon, don't get yourself killed."

He just raised his thumb.

* * *

Hitomi was feeling a little irritated. Who knows how much days had passed since she had gotten inside the forest, but _still_ couldn't find Siper.

Where the hell had she gotten into?

"Hey!" she heard.

Quickly, she turned around and slid into a fighting position. However, when she spotted the white head, she relaxed.

"Yo, Whitey!" she grinned, Killua's eyebrow twitched. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing really, Blondie-girl."

She glared at him. He smirked, with that cat-face of his.

"I'm not Blondie! Kurapika is," she said, annoyed.

"That's why you are Blondie-girl," he answered, teasing her. "You two should be the 'Blondie siblings'!

Hitomi sighed.

"That's stupid," she said.

" _You_ are stupid, you were the one to call me Whitey in first place," Killua said. "Also, blond girls are always dumb!"

"At least I'm not old! I prefer blonde," she grinned.

They both laughed at their childish quarrel about _hair_. After a few minutes of talking, Hitomi changed the topic.

"You are well aware of the fool following you, don't you?" she murmured.

"Yeah," he sighed, irritated. "Since the first day he has been stalking me. I told him to got out, but nothing."

"And you didn't go to confront him?" she asked.

"I was just lazy," he replied. "He isn't worth of it."

She shook her head, before turning around. She started to walk to the tree in where he was. The Amori brother looked at her.

"Find you!" she smiled.

After a while, the other two arrived and glared at their brother.

"Yo," Killua waved his hand.

The other two raised their hands. When they realized what were they doing, used them to hit their brother.

"You idiot!" the older shouted. "You're too scared to fight a couple of kids like these without us?!"

After quarrelling a little more, the youngest one get closer to them and glared at Hitomi. She just raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, girl, you are the applicant 406, aren't you?" he asked.

"And?" she replied, with a blank expression.

"You see, you are my target. I'm so lucky that you come here," he continued. "If you don't give it to me, I... I..."

She raised an eyebrow at his lack of words.

"I will hurt your friend!" he pointed at Killua.

"Oh, really?" she asked. "Good luck then."

He kicked Killua far away, and he fell into the ground with his hands still in his pockets. He smirked at her. But she did too.

The boy got up in a jump, unscathed, and looked at the badge in his hand.

"So you are Number 198," he said.

Imori was surprised at this.

"And that one is the 197!" the other two heard from behind. They looked at their backs, there was Hitomi with the middle brother's badge.

She jumped back, before they could do anything else.

"Hey, that means that the badge 199..." Killua said, looking at the older one.

Hitomi smirked, putting the badge she won in her pocket. The brothers tried to attack them all together. They both dodged the attack.

And Killua managed to put his claws on the middle brother's neck.

"You better not move," Killua said. "My claws are sharper than blades."

Hitomi got closer and stretched her hand to the man. He had no option but give it to her. Hitomi smirked, after throwing it to the boy.

"Thank you!" he received it, with his feline expression.

And after that, Killua threw the badge 198 far away from them. Then, they walked away.

* * *

Finally, they had the fire done. And the fishes were cooked. Hitomi was really hungry and took a huge bite at her fish.

Killua laughed and she glared at him.

"You sure are different from Kurapika," he noticed, taking the fish from the fire.

"In which way?" she asked, slightly annoyed.

"Firstly, he looks more a girl than you," he teased.

She growled, biting the fish once again.

"Also, you dress really different from him," he said. "Anyway, his clothes are... a little strange."

He was about to eat, when she said.

"They are traditional clothes from the Kuruta Clan." she explained, his gaze softened. "I used to wear clothes like it."

"But you stopped," he said. "Why?"

"Well... I find it like a form to move on," she explained. "Once my clan was massacred, I decided to build a new life, changing even my traditions and... forgetting the past. However, Kurapika..."

"He is still tied at it," he said.

Hitomi nodded.

"He still wants revenge, and I can't convince him to not to do it. He will just end up dying in vain," she confessed. "Yeah, I hate the Spiders. But... What if I managed to kill them? What would I get from it? Blood in my hands. Neither my clan's eyes nor their lives. Just the blood."

Killua stared at her for a while.

"All of this causes changing clothes?" he joked. "It doesn't make any sense."

"Yeah, it doesn't..." she murmured. "One day I was happy in my home and on the other... Nothing makes sense."

Killua sighed and put a hand on her shoulder making the girl look at him. Then, a small smile appeared in her features.

* * *

Next morning Hitomi woke up and saw Killua sitting on the other side of the tree she was leaning on. She knew that Killua, probably hadn't sleep in all night. Assassins' stuff.

"I'm getting water," she declared. "It won't be long."

And then she started to walk. She got through the trees but she suddenly stopped when she heard the sound of bushes moving. Hitomi quickly hid.

Her eyes flew open when she saw who it was. Siper was walking around with her rifle over her shoulder.

 _"There she is..."_ Hitomi thought.

The girl took a step back, but the woman's eyes moved towards her her direction and pointed at her with her weapon.

"Who is there?!" she shouted. "Come out or I'll shoot!"

Hitomi froze and didn't come out.

 _"If I come out, she will shoot, even if she says that she won't do it,"_ she reasoned. _"If I don't, she will do it anyway... So, what?"_

She didn't have any time to think further because a wave of pain hit her right arm, but managed to put a hand over her mouth to keep herself silent.

Despite of the pain she was feeling, she managed to slowly back off and hid further in the woods. Sniper walked cautiously and reached the spot where she had been.

Hitomi then flinched and stared at the few drops on the ground of her own blood. She looked beside her and noticed she didn't have where to run away.

She was at the border of the cliff and there was a river behind her backs, running furiously. She looked again at Siper.

 _"Please,"_ she pleaded. _"Don't notice it..."_

Fortunately for her, something else caught Siper's attention. In the river, there were two people and Hitomi's eyes opened slightly at the sight of the guy with needles - Gittarackur - and another man whose name she didn't care to remember.

The woman aimed at them and Hitomi narrowed her eyes.

 _"When a person shoots somebody, for less than a second, their main focus is the person they had just hit,_ " she thought, getting serious. _"It's my only chance."_

Slowly, she took her dagger out of her pocket.

Just in the time when the man tackled Gittarackur, Siper shot. However, she got surprised once she saw something flying towards her and taking her plate off, before sticking in a tree.

In a flash, Hitomi got out her hiding spot, jumped at the tree and grabbed the plate. Siper turned around and aimed at her.

"You there!" she shouted.

All of it happened too fast to the kid. Gittarackur jumped _really_ high, stood in front of Siper and, when Hitomi realized what was happening, her target was dead in the floor, with needles sticked in her face.

Gittarackur looked at her.

 _"I'm so dead,"_ that was her only thought.

Hitomi started to run away, just thinking how to escape from that place. Her arm was hurting like hell, but forced her legs to run faster. That guy creeped the hell out of her.

However, she froze. Gittarackur was standing before her. He laughed in that strange way with needles in his hand.

Her mind was running for a solution.

"I'm not your target, you know that," she said in a flash.

"How come you are that sure?" he talked for the first time.

"Because I already defeated him," she replied.

Gittarackur put his hands down and she gulped. She was well aware, though, that he could kill her in any moment if he wanted to.

Hitomi had to be cautious with her words.

The strange guy lifted his card and she stared at it.

"You know who is this?" he asked.

She sighed in relief. That was Number 197. She showed him the plate she had in her pocket and smirked.

"This one?" she asked. "If you let me alone, I'll give it to you."

Gittarackur laughed again, gritting his teeth.

Hitomi put the plate in a tree and, slowly, started to walk backwards. Once she was sure that he couldn't see her anymore, she started to run again.

 _"I'm lucky,"_ she thought. _"I can't believe he let me live..."_

Hitomi leaned in a wall and looked at her wound. She winced at the sight of it, but wrapped it with a piece of the lower part of her pants.

"Hitomi!"

She looked around and found Killua walking towards her. He looked at her arm and flinched too.

"How did you find me?" she asked.

"The blood," he pointed at her arm. "I followed its trail."

Hitomi just looked at the tiny drops of it and sighed. She still couldn't get how he noticed that little detail, but didn't say anything about it.

"What happened?" he asked, putting his hands on his pockets.

"I didn't get water," she grinned, before showing Number 80 plate. "But I got Siper's plate."

Killua smirked.

"I think I will have to see your face around for a little more time, Dummy," he teased.

"What?" she furrowed her eyebrows.

"You didn't like Blondie," he explained. "Also, blonde girls are dumb."

"This is stupid," she sighed.

" _You_ are. That's why I'm calling you like that."

Killua stared at her wound for a few seconds, before sighing.

"You have to get Leorio to treat that wound," he said.

"No way, I'm fine," she said, stubbornly.

"I didn't ask for your opinion."

* * *

Killua dragged Hitomi _all_ the way.

However, they got surprised at the sight of Kurapika and Leorio sleeping, leaning in a tree. On other, was Ponzu with a plate in her hand.

"What the hell are they doing?" Killua asked.

Hitomi stared at them, cluelessly.

She kneeled down, next to Kurapika who was sound asleep. Playfully, she poked his cheek and he shot up, coming to himself.

He stared at his sister, confused.

"Oh, damn it," she joked. "I thought you two were dead already."

"Hitomi?" he said still stunned, before glancing at Killua. "Killua is here too?"

"Yo," he raised his hand in greeting.

Leorio woke up just to see the kids.

"Huh?!" he shouted, pointing at the kids. "What are these brats doing here?!"

"Good way for waking up, old man," Killua said, blankly.

"Where's Gon?" Kurapika asked all of sudden.

Killua and Hitomi raised their eyebrows.

"Gon?" they asked.

"He must have gone now. Maybe his head has cleared up now." Leorio replied. "He's been unusually tense."

They got worried all of sudden. Being tense wasn't like him at all.

"Anyway, what's that girl doing here?" Hitomi asked, pointing at Ponzu.

"She is Leorio's target," Kurapika glared at Leorio for a while, before lightly elbowing his arm.

"Yeah, I know," he replied.

Leorio got closer to Ponzu and took her plate. With that, he had now six points to pass that test.

"By the way, can you take a closer look to this?" Killua grabbed Hitomi's arm. "I had to drag her all the way here."

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched. Kurapika ran at her and looked at her wound, in worry.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Don't be such a worrywart!" she shouted, embarrassed. "Siper was my target, that's all!"

Leorio brought his wallet and looked at the wound, making her wince in pain when he touched it. He sighed and shook his head.

"It was to be expected..." he murmured.

"What?" she inquired.

"You have not idea about bandaging someone," he chuckled. "I still can't understand how your blood still flows through it... It's too tight."

"Shut up!"she pouted.

Leorio took off the piece of cloth she had wrapped in her arm and replaced it with clean bandages. Once he finished doing that, a voice echoed in all the forest.

"That marks the end of the Fourth Phase! All applicants, please make their way to the starting point as soon as possible. You have one hour from now to get back to the starting point. Anyone who cannot make it back before then will be deemed disqualified, so please bear that in mind."

Finally, they had gotten to the last Exam.

Hitomi felt nervous, but started to walk anyway.

There was no way she turned back right now.

* * *

Thanks to **Shira4** and **SoulXHunter** for reviewing! They made me really happy :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

See you all later!


	10. Hitomi x Written Exam? x Needles & Blood

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Hitomi x Written Exam? x Needles and Blood**

The three friends high-fived each other, cheering about their victory and their now open way to the finals.

"So you are not dead," Hitomi said. "You made it after all."

"So did you two, guys," Gon replied.

Hitomi grinned, showing at him both plates she had. Killua did the same.

"I had no problem getting these," he said. "How about you?"

Gon stared at the ground, a little upset. His two friends sighed.

"I bet you had to get your six points by going after three random applicants, right?" Killua said.

"Can you blame him?" she looked at the white-head. "After all, his target was Hiso-"

She was cut in mid sentence, when Gon showed them Hisoka's badge. They both looked at it in disbelief.

"No way, you actually got Hisoka's badge?!" Hitomi shouted. "I don't know if congratulate you or hit you for being that reckless!"

"Wow, that's unbelievable! To think you could actually get Hisoka's badge!" Killua exclaimed, before grabbing Gon's shoulders. "What kind of magic did you have to use?!"

"Well.. uh..." he stuttered. "Actually... he gave it to me."

Killua and Hitomi looked at each other and then to Gon, raising their eyebrows in confusion. They had heard about Leorio and Kurapika about his unlikely tenseness, but...

"Don't get it, what do you mean?" the boy asked him.

He just sadly smiled, but didn't say anything else.

"Well, if you don't wanna tell me I guess I can't force you to," he said.

"Whatever happened, all matters is that you passed... and that you are very much alive," Hitomi smiled, putting her hands in her hoodie's pocket. "The next test is the last one. If we pass this, we'll be Hunters."

Gon nodded, still a little upset. Hitomi stared at him for a moment, before noticing Kurapika behind them.

"You three," he called them. "A meeting has been called for all remaining applicants."

"I bet they're gonna tell us about the final test!" Gon shouted excitedly, before starting to run. "Come on, Killua, Hitomi!"

"Hey, wait for me!" Killua shouted, following him.

"Running again?" the girl complained, following them lazily. "It's the only thing we had been doing all along the Exam!"

Kurapika blinked at them a couple of times before smiling.

 _"I don't remember the last time she hanged around with a friend of her age,"_ he thought. _"I'm happy for you, Hitomi."_

* * *

And after all, Netero refused to tell them about the last exam. Because of that, they were all - except for Hisoka and Gittarackur - talking to each other.

"We've all worked so hard to get this far," Leorio said. "It would be nice if we could all pass together."

"That's unlike you," Killua snickered. "Back when we were in Trick Tower you said you would do anything to pass the test, even if it meant fighting your friends."

"As much as I hate agreeing with Whitey, he is right," Hitomi admitted.

"That was then, this is now!" Leorio shouted at them.

"In any case, it's pointless for us rookies to speculate," Hanzo shut Leorio up. "How about we just ask someone who's gone through it already?"

They all stared at Pokkle, who raised his hands in defense.

"No, not me. I failed the Fourth Phase three years ago," he said. "This is the first time I've made it to the Final Phase myself."

After that, they directed their gaze to Bodoro, saying that he was the wiser in the room because of his age.

"Last year, I didn't make it past the First Phase," he replied.

"That's no help," Hitomi said, along her brother, Leorio and Hanzo.

"However, I think I can predict the topic for our final test," he said. "The First Phase tested our physical abilities. The Second Phase tested our powers of observation. The Third Phase was the Trick Tower and our experience varied depending on the route we took, but I think basically it was supposed to test our mental power. And as for the Fourth Phase I think it's obvious. It tested all around skills."

"Just tell us what are you thinking already," Hitomi said, tired of all that blabbering

."You still don't you get it, do you? There's only one thing left. One area that we haven't been tested on in any of the Phases," he smirked. "The wide range of knowledge required of all Hunters. Which means a written exam!"

They all got shocked at that statement. Even Hisoka's house of cards crumbled after the revelation.

"We've come all this way... for a written exam?" Leorio fell into panic.

"Certainly, as a Hunter, one might encounter a situation that requires expert knowledge in a variety of subjects like history and biology," Kurapika reasoned.

"This really sucks! I didn't think they would leave the toughest one for me in the end!"

Hitomi narrowed her eyes at Bodoro and raised an eyebrow.

"There's a library right on this ship!" Hanzo shouted. "Let's go!"

They all started to run towards the exit and Hitomi sighed. Gon and Killua turned around to look at her.

"Yeah, yeah..." she murmured, before going towards the door with them.

She gave Bodoro a last glance.

 _"I'm sure he is making this stuff up..."_

* * *

Hitomi walked towards the cafeteria, to take a break. However, she spotted Killua in a table, drinking something in a cup. She facepalmed.

 _"How does he manage to be in all places where I am?"_ she thought annoyed.

Killua then noticed her presence.

"Hey, Dummy!" he exclaimed.

"Oh!" her eyebrow twitched in annoyance, "Hi there, _Kitty-boy_."

He smiled at her with his cat-face, making Hitomi sweatdrop. She sighed, before taking a seat beside him.

And then saw what he was drinking and resisted the urge to puke.

"Is that-?" she asked.

"Hm?" he said, before looking at the cup. "Oh, hot chocolate. Why do you ask?"

She just looked away.

"Couldn't be that..." he said, shocked. "You don't know chocolate?!"

"Of course I know!" she said, embarrassed. "It's just like I never felt like tasting it... It looks disgusting."

"Why is that?" he asked again.

"Its color... It's just _too brown_..." Hitomi murmured.

Killua raised an eyebrow, wondering about that. He was about to took a sip of it when he remembered something.

He was a chocolate fan. As much as he hated it, the mission of every choco-lover was to spread chocolate to all the world.

Or that was his belief.

"Taste it now," he handed her the cup.

"Why?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Just do it!" he shouted.

"Okay, okay..." she gave up. "Take it easy, Kitty-boy."

Hitomi grabbed the cup and looked at the brownish liquid in disgust, she gulped.

"Do I have to do it?" Hitomi asked, unsure.

Killua solemnly nodded. She took a long breath, before letting the drink slip in her mouth. Her eyes opened slightly, at the unknown, but sweet taste she felt.

"Well?" Killua asked, taking the cup back. "It taste delicious, doesn't it?"

"You can say so," she admitted. "But I prefer citric flavors, instead of that rather cloying one."

"Whatever."

She stood up, to search for something to drink. The boy was drinking a little more of his hot chocolate when something crossed his mind.

Hitomi had just drunk in the same spot as him.

That was called indirect kissing.

Killua's face paled, before starting to cough, choking with his own drink.

 _"Gross!"_ he thought. _"This is so disgusting!"_

"Is there something wrong?" Hitomi asked, with a orange shake in her hand.

"Nothing..." he replied, flushing a little bit.

She stared at him raising an eyebrow, but shook it off. She sipped her straw.

"Please, Applicant Number 99," a voice in the speakers said and they both draw their attention to it. "Report to the conference room."

They looked at each other and Killua sighed. He stood up and started to walk away with his hands on his pockets.

That was the last exam.

"Killua," she called to him. "Don't lose."

"I won't," he smirked.

Hitomi drank a little more of her juice, still thinking. That was the last step before becoming Hunter, as she always wanted to.

But, what would happen before then? Would Kurapika still want revenge? Of course he would.

And furthermore, would she see the others again? Gon and even Leorio were her friends.

Then Killua... Why did she told him not to lose? She disliked him, he was just an arrogant prat with the face of a cat. Sure, it was funny to annoy him, but...

He wasn't her friend, she was positive. At least she would be happy if she never saw him again.

"Hey, Dummy."

She looked at her side, just to see him again. A vein popped up in her head at the sight of him.

"So, did an idiot like you pass the Exam?" she asked.

"It was boring, even for a game," he smirked. "Well, I don't think you'll pass it. It requires quite a lot."

Hitomi didn't have time for asking further, the voice echoed in the room once again.

"Next is Applicant 406, please come to the conference room."

She flinched, standing up from her seat. Killua playfully pushed her forward, making her stuck her tongue at him.

Hitomi released a long sigh, before opening the door to the room. There was Netero, waiting for her behind a table.

She glanced at it. There were a lot of pictures, from all the applicants except of her.

"Welcome, please take a seat," Netero said.

She did as she was told, a little tense though.

"I-Is this the Last Phase," she asked.

"No, no. I just want to ask you a few questions for my reference," he replied.

Her eyebrow twitched, before sipping in her orange shake again.

 _"That lying bastard..."_

She sighed, releasing the air she was holding all this time.

"Well Hitomi, tell me," he said. "Who do you find the most intriguing?"

"Obviously, Hisoka is in the top of the list," she pointed at his photo. "That psycho is dangerous and powerful, the perfect mix of caos. His personality inspires horror and manages to make you feel like going away if you stay with him in less than a second."

Netero stroked his long beard, nodding.

"Also, there's this guy," she pointed at Gittarackur's photo. "He doesn't talk too much, but is kinda creepy... especially his laugh. It gives me the chills."

The president nodded again in agreement.

"And who is the last person you'd want to fight with?"

"Can I mention more than one person?" she asked.

"Go ahead."

Hitomi sighed and pointed at Gon, Kurapika, Leorio and Killua.

"These ones," she said, before pointing at Kurapika. "This one is my brother, and I will hate to fight him for something like this," she then pointed at Leorio and Gon. "And these are my friends."

"How about Killua?" Netero asked.

"Well, as much as I dislike him, I can bring myself to fight him," she stared at the boy's photo. "I just don't know. Sometimes I hate him, but sometimes is fun to be around him, just like Gon."

Netero chucked.

"Have you become friends?"

"No way," she said. "I would rather die before befriending that selfish cat-boy!"

"You too?" he spoke, rather to himself.

She looked at him, curious.

"Well, that's all," he said. "You are dismissed."

Hitomi nodded, before walking out the room. She felt irritated again, at the sight of Killua in his cat-mode once again.

"Well, did you pass?" he joked.

"Of course, Whitey," she smirked. Then she took her juice and poured all of it in Killua's head. "Or should I say Orangey?"

Killua was now pissed off and glared at her.

"Goodbye, then!" the girl started to run.

"Wait up!" he yelled. "I'll kill you now!"

She laughed a little bit.

 _"Friends? As if..."_

* * *

They were all ready for the last test. Hanzo, Leorio and Pokkle were exhausted, but set for that written exam they have been preparing for.

"The Final Phase is going to be a one-on-one fighting tournament!" Netero declared.

"T-Tournament?!" Hanzo shouted, in disbelief.

"You mean it's not gonna be a written exam?!" Leorio exclaimed as well.

"Written exam?" he said. "Where did you ever get an idea like that from?"

The three who hadn't got any sleep for studying all night snapped their heads at Bodoro, glaring at him. He just looked away.

"Here's the chart that shows who's fighting who in the tournament," Netero said, taking the cloth of where the chart were.

They were shocked at it.

 _"Just one of us passes?"_ Hitomi thought, unable to believe it.

"Don't get the wrong idea," Netero laughed. "To pass the Final Phase all you have to do is win one match. In other words, in this tournament set up the winners of the marches get out of it and the losers advance to the next round. So getting to the top of this chart means you failed. Moreover, everyone is given at least two chances to win."

Hitomi sighed in relief but Gon suddenly tensed.

"Will Kurapika and you be okay?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" she replied, confused.

"That's true!" Killua said, shocked. "Look at the first matches you both have."

She looked at it and realized she was going to fight Gittarackur, and then looked at her brother's fight. Hitomi was positive that her blood boiled at the moment when she saw that.

"You are fighting Hisoka?!" she asked to him. "You have to give up."

"I will win," he said determined. "No matter what."

She growled, fury slowly consuming her. She glared at Netero.

"You old geezer!" she said. "You'll pay if that psycho kills my brother."

Hisoka smirked behind her and both Killua and Gon sweatdropped at her boldness.

"He won't," that was the president's reply.

"How can you be that sure?" she said, still angry.

"Because he will be disqualified."

They all stared at the old man, still not getting what he was talking about.

"If any applicant kills another, they will be disqualified."

That helped Hitomi to calm down a little bit, at least Kurapika would live. However, if he leaded him to a state where he would be physically alive, but mentally dead?

Hitomi would not be able to bear it.

"Don't worry," Kurapika seemed to feel his little sister uneasiness and put a hand over her shoulder.

She nodded, reluctantly letting him go. Kurapika stood in front of Hisoka.

Kurapika took his swords and started running towards him, using them to keep away Hisoka's cards from him. Once in front of him, he waved his sword, but the magician jumped and avoided the blow.

"Hey, you," Hisoka said with a smile, "There's something that might interest you."

That was when he noticed that his sword had been cracked by the card at that time. They both jumped in air and Hisoka attacked him with a card once again. The sword ended up snapping completely.

Kurapika's eyes turned red for a few seconds before returning to its original color.

"Losing one of my swords definitely puts me at a disadvantage," he said. "But I will more than make up its loss with my pride!"

Hisoka smirked.

Again, he launched at him. However, before he could even hit him, Hisoka disappeared and attacked the Kuruta by surprise. Kurapika fell into the ground.

A red glow appeared in Hitomi's eyes.

"Damn you, Hisoka!" she yelled. "If you kill him you will be disqualified!"

"It's why I'm doing my best to take it easy on him," he smiled in a creepy way. "Cute unripe _fruit_."

Now Hitomi didn't know what was the worst thing. Being called like that by a crazy clown, that the crazy clown was beating her brother...

Or that her idiotic brother was standing up no matter what.

Kurapika tried to attack him once again, but Hisoka grabbed his arm before it and hit him instead. The others shouted at him, pleading him to surrender.

Hitomi clenched her fists, smiling sadly.

"No matter many times you ask him to surrender, it's no use," she said. "He won't give up, that reckless Blondie."

He looked at her sister and nodded, before standing once again. He tried to attack him a lot of times before that, but he couldn't even touch him.

Hisoka then tried to kick him, but the boy jumped and avoided it.

Kurapika looked at him... with his eyes glowing red.

The boy ran towards the magician, who threw him a card. They all watched in amazement how he took it with his bare hand and threw it back to him, stabbing it in Hisoka's shoulder. The Kuruta-boy hit his enemy with the back of his sword and made him step back.

His eyes switched back to normal.

Hisoka took the card in his shoulder and started to lick it, in a disgusting way. His eyes had the same shine that a psychopath's one would have.

"Calm down, gotta calm down..." he murmured.

He returned back to normal and started walking, throwing his card away. He stepped at Kurapika's side, and whispered something.

Hitomi didn't know what it was, but she saw Kurapika's eyes swift into scarlet for a second.

"I forfeit," he said. "I decided to make it in the next match."

Gon began to celebrate. Hitomi, however, just smiled. She was still very worried about what Hisoka had said the blond.

Her chain of thoughts stopped when she heard:

"Second fight. Applicant Number 301, Gittarackur, and applicant Number 406, Hitomi, please come forward."

Gon cheered at her, and she smiled. She walked, passing by Killua.

"Be careful," he told her when she was beside him. "He looks like Hisoka."

"Yeah, don't worry," she told him. "I won't lose because I don't wanna fight you yet. You would be scared."

"Scared? You wish," he smirked and she put her hands in her pockets. "I still have to fight Pokkle you know."

"Yeah," she sweatdropped. "But I have a bad feeling about that."

And she walked away. She stood in front of Gittarackur and raised a hand.

"Hi, again," she said.

The guy snickered, clenching his teeth as always.

The referee told them to start and she slid into a fighting stance, without taking her gaze out of her rival.

 _"As Killua said, he is like Hisoka. It will be better if I wait a little bit before attacking,"_ she thought. _"If I rush and move carelessly, I won't get out of it_ unscratched..."

Hitomi stared at her rival, who took out of his needles and throw them to her. Quickly, she jumped and avoided them, and they stabbed in the floor.

And Gittarackur didn't move either, making her jump into the conclusion.

He made her avoid the attack on purpose. He was waiting for her move too.

 _"I need a plan. Now,"_ she thought, as a drop of sweat ran through her forehead.

Her violet eyes snapped open when she felt danger. Gittarackur wasn't in front of her anymore, that could be just one thing...

"Behind you, Hitomi!" Gon shouted.

"Yeah, I know!" she said, turning around.

She ducked, avoiding his kick. He tried to punch her, but she jumped, dodging it as well as she could. She quickly leaped and stood a couple of meters away from him.

 _"He is too fast,"_ she reasoned. _"I can't afford to be that close to this guy..."_

The only thing that the girl knew was that she had to keep her distance with him. They both started to run around the room, in parallel directions. Gittarackur threw some more needles, but she dodged them, managing to have only a scratch in her right cheek.

 _"His attacks are almost identical..."_ Killua thought in cold sweat, before shaking his head. _"No, there's no way. Their face are different, aren't they?"_

After a while, Hitomi and Gittarackur stopped. The girl closed her eyes and released a long sigh.

"I don't have more option than..." she opened her eyes, before running at him, "commit suicide!"

She browsed her knives and tried to stab him, but he grabbed them with his fingers. She smirked, before using her leg to make a foot sweep. He lost his balance, letting the girl push him back meters away from her.

He looked at little shocked at her movements.

 _"Killing her is a good idea..."_ Gittarackur thought. _"But I will get disqualified if I do so."_

He just spaced out for a couple of seconds, but they were enough for the idea to hit Hitomi's mind, making her smirk in silence.

 _"It's time for using that,"_ she realized.

Gittarackur raised his needles and Hitomi left something in the floor. Quickly, she jumped high in the air.

"Thanks a lot, Killua!" she shouted.

"Huh?" he said, confused.

The grey ball she had just dropped got stabbed by a needle. In a flash, it started to liberate white smoke which clouded the arena.

 _"My bomb of smoke?"_ Killua thought in disbelief. _"When did she-?"_

His mind remembered the time when she walked by him before the match and his eyebrow twitched in annoyment.

"You stole it back then!" he shouted, irritated.

Kurapika shook his head at this.

Hitomi didn't reply but entered the smoke, which become thicker as time passed by.

 _"My only chance!"_

She then tried to kick him in his neck. However, her plan got frustrated when he grabbed her leg. She tried to punch him, but he got a grip in her arm, in the exact spot where she had been shot by Siper in the last phase.

She flinched and froze, and it costed her way too much.

A huge wave of pain attacked her as soon as he punched her belly. She got thrown and her back collided with the wall, making her cough blood. Her pain became greater, when a lot of needles were shot to her, piercing in her skin.

And the smoke vanished.

"Hitomi!" Kurapika shouted in worry.

Her plan had failed awfully. Even though her injuries hurted like hell, she still managed to stand up.

"Damn it..." she groaned.

Gittarackur walked towards her, but she couldn't even move anymore. He kneeled down next to her and put a hand under her chin, making her stare at him at his eyes.

"You are too reckless," he spoke, for the first time, "Yet too _weak..._ "

She opened her eyes, before letting go from his grip. He took a couple of steps back.

That were true in a way, she was aware of that. She was weak, too weak.

When Pairo and her parents hid her in a wardrobe... she was that weak to get out of it, and didn't do anything to avoid them to get killed... or to die together with them.

When she confronted Gittarackur in the Fourth Phase, she was that weak to even move.

And she was that weak... that she was unable to keep her brother away from that desire of revenge.

"I'm sick of it..." she murmured, hiding her eyes with her bangs. "I don't want to be weak anymore."

They all looked at her, in surprise.

"That's why..." Hitomi looked at him, her gaze scarlet. "I'll defeat you!"

She disappeared from his sight and reappeared behind him, raising her leg. He got hold of it and did the same when she tried to kick him with her free leg. She then punched him across the face.

Gittarackur pushed her and she stood there, determined. He had to end this, now.

He stretched his hand at her walking slowly towards her, and she looked at him in confusion. Hitomi tried to move, but he quickly said.

"Don't move yet. If you do that or I touch you, the real battle will start," he said. "You know the way avoid it."

She didn't mind him and grabbed his arm, before hitting him with her knee in his stomach. He stepped back and stared at her for a while.

He started to laugh.

"I give up," he said.

She raised an eyebrow.

"What?" she asked.

"I give up," he repeated. "I can't make you surrender. Your eyes tell me that you won't forfeit, even if you die."

"Do they?" she smiled, her eyes turning back to violet. "They have betrayed me then."

"The winner of the second match is Number 406, Hitomi!" the referee declared.

She blinked and looked at her friends, who smiled at her. She smirked too.

 _"Oh yeah!"_ she yelled in her head. _"I'm a Hunter now!"_

* * *

Well, that's where this chapter ends.

I would like to thank **Shira4** and **SoulXHunter** for leaving a review for this story! You two are great:) I hope you liked this chapter.

Also, I hope that all silent readers out there enjoyed it as well!

See you later ;)


	11. Killua x Illumi x You're My Friend!

**Disclaimer:** Hunter x Hunter belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi. I just own my OC, Hitomi.

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Killua x Illumi x You're My Friend!**

Her eyes were turning red, and Hitomi was struggling to keep them in their natural color. She couldn't interfere in their battle, or Gon would be disqualified. Then, he would be really, _really_ angry.

But, Gon was really injured and...

 ** _CRACK!_**

Now his arm was broken, and did not help in her current situation.

"Hey..." she murmured. "If I can't hold back, don't even dare to try and stop me."

"I feel the same as you," Leorio said, clenching his fists. "Don't stop us, Kurapika."

"Me? Stop you?" Kurapika said as his eyes shifted briefly in red "Don't worry, I feel the same as you, guys."

She looked at Killua, he wore an expression of indifference. But, she also could tell he was sweating a little bit. That proved that he suffered as much as them.

The battle continued a little longer, and Gon had not yet surrendered. Hanzo removed from his sleeve a knife and threatened him.

"Next time, I'm not just going to break one of your bones, I'm going to make it so you would never be able to stand or walk!" he told him. "But, that's the last thing I want to do, so please give up."

"That's doesn't sounds good," Gon said, seriously. "I don't want to have my legs chopped off. But I don't want to give up either. Let's find a solution!"

Hanzo was taken back by his words.

"Y-You..." he murmured. "What makes you think you're in any position to negotiate?!"

That comment caused the girl's eyes turn back into its natural color again, in surprise. The atmosphere suddenly enlightened, leaving all people there surprised at the simple boy's words.

However, both Killua and Hitomi jumped when they heard a snicker. They turned around to see Hisoka, doing his best to hold his laugh.

"Hisoka's laugh is scarier than Hanzo..." she murmured.

"You're right..." he agreed.

Hanzo, on the other hand, got angrier.

"If you're going to make a fool of me, I'll cut you up for real!"

"Yeah, but still, I'm not going to give up, no matter what. If you cut me up, I'll probably bleed to death," Gon said, before looking at the referee. "And if he kills me, then he's the one who fails, isn't that right?"

"Y-Yes," he muttered

"See? That wouldn't be good for either of us, would it?"

Both Killua and Hitomi tried to look away from the laughing Hisoka, before looking at Gon and Hanzo once again.

"What's going on?" Killua said, surprised. "Nothing has really changed, yet the tense atmosphere of just a moment ago is totally dispelled just like that."

"I could never tell that Hanzo could be that taken out of guard because Gon's simple mindedness," Hitomi smirked. "He's just too natural but unpredictable."

Now, Hanzo was _really_ annoyed. He pressed his knife against Gon's forehead, causing a bit of blood ran down his face. He tried to threaten him for a while, but it was fruitless. Tired, he turned around, before putting back his weapon in its place.

"I give up. I can't kill you and I can't think of a way to make you surrender. I'll try again in the next round," he declared.

Everyone was surprised, but relieved somehow. Gon, on the other hand, wasn't.

"It can't end like this! It's not fair! The two of us should come up with some other way to fight each other!"

Hitomi facepalmed.

"Are you an idiot?!" Hanzo snapped. "You're never going to surrender, no matter how we fight, right?!"

"But I'm not happy winning like this!" Gon shouted. "That's why we have to think together on something!"

Killua and Hitomi just sighed.

"In short, you want me to fight you in the earnest, even though I'm ready to forfeit this match," Hanzo said, seriously. "But not only that, you want me to help you think some way that'll let you win the way you want. Is that about right?"

"Yeah," he said, smiling.

Using all his strength, Hanzo hit Gon, causing him to fall unconscious to the ground. Because of that, they took him to the infirmary.

"Idiot," Hitomi rolled her eyes.

Fights passed by quickly. Hisoka won against Bodoro and Hanzo against Pokkle. Bodoro and Leorio's match was postponed because he was really hurt. The following one was Pokkle vs. Killua.

The two of them glared at each other.

"Ah, I give up," Killua said, surprising Pokkle. "Sorry, but I just don't feel like fighting you. Congratulations."

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched in irritation. _"I knew it..."_ she thought.

The next match was Killua and Gittarackur's one, which worried the girl just a little bit.

"Be careful," she told him, "He's really dangerous."

"Yeah, I know." he smirked. "I'll win. It'll be fun"

"Just let's hope you stupidness doesn't kill you," Hitomi sighed.

Once the match began, Killua put himself in a fighting stance, like a cat stalking its prey would do. However, the boy paled when he heard his enemy talking.

"Kill," he said.

Automatically, Killua stopped his attack. Her eyes flew open because of the nickname that only a few amount of people would use to call him.

"I guess you never realized," the guy said.

The enemy began to remove the needles from his head, causing it to change radically. His hair grew up and turned black. He raised his face, letting the others see his emotionless, black eyes.

"B-Brother..." Killua murmured, still in shock.

That was a big shock for the others who were there too. Killua had a brother.

"Yo," The guy raised his hand in greeting. "I heard you stabbed Mom and Milluki."

"So?"

"Mom was in tears, you know?"

Leorio glared at Killua. "I can't blame her, after being treated like that by her own son. He's a horrible brat, after all-!" he said.

"She was so happy." Killua's brother said, making Leorio fall into the floor. "She said he was so happy that her little boy was all grown up."

Nobody could help but sweatdrop at the unexpected comment. The girl looked, amazed, at both brothers.

 _"Now I can understand why Killua tried to escape..."_

"But she was still worried about you being out on your own. So, she asked me to check up on you," he continued. "But what a coincidence. I never knew you wanted to become a Hunter. I'm here because a Hunter License would be useful in my next job. Sorry for hiding for you, but what about you?"

"It's not like I wanted to become a Hunter," Killua replied. "I just felt like taking it."

"I see, I'm glad to hear that. Then I can give you this advice without any worries," he said, in the same tone of voice as always. "Kill, you'll never make a good Hunter. Your calling is as an assassin."

Just like the others, Hitomi fighted to not jump in there and hit that Gittarackur guy. She could see that, little by little, Killua's face was being covered by more and more cold sweat.

"There's no light in you, just darkness." he said.

 _"You're wrong..."_ Killua thought

Meanwhile, Hitomi's fists clenched tightly. Her eyes were struggling to remain violet.

"You have no desires or ambitions of your own."

 _"He's wrong,"_ Hitomi thought, gritting her teeth.

"The only thing that makes you happy is when you're involved in someone's death."

"You're wrong!" Killua shouted, but he was not the only one to do so. He looked at Hitomi, who had just said the same thing at the same time as him.

She was shaking in anger and seemed to fight against her own impulses. She sighed and took a step back, with her fists still clenching.

 _"Hitomi... Are you defending me for real?_ " Killua thought, in disbelief.

Gittarackur, in the other hand, just chose to ignore her.

"No, it's true," he said, Killua gritted his teeth, "because you were brought up to be this way by our dad and myself. You know it as well as anybody."

Hitomi took a step closer again, but Kurapika put a hand over her shoulder to stop her.

Killua, however, gazed at his feet.

"It's true. I'm not interested in becoming a Hunter," then, he raised his head again and fixed his gaze in his brother. "But do have something I want."

"No, you don't," he said, confident.

"I do!" he exclaimed. "There are things I desire."

Despite his flat expression, he somehow looked surprised. "Then tell me, what is it?" he asked.

He stared at the floor again, avoiding eye contact with everyone, including Hitomi. He knew that she was also waiting for an answer.

Somehow, he was afraid. How would she react if he said something like that?

 _"It's not the time to be wavering,"_ he thought, determined.

"You don't really want anything, do you?" his brother said, after a while.

"I do," he glanced at the girl for a second and then looked at his brother. However, his gaze got stuck in his feet another time. "I want to be... friends with Gon and Hitomi."

Hitomi was taken aback at those words. She would have never thought that Killua could ever in his whole life say that, let alone in front of her.

 _"Friends, huh?"_ she blushed at the thought in embarrassment. As far as she remembered she had never have a friend of her age.

A tiny smile crossed her face and looked at the floor.

"I don't wanna kill anymore. I'm sick of it," Killua admitted. "I wanna be friends with Gon and Hitomi, like a normal kid. I wanna hang out, like a normal kid. Just be normal."

Hitomi scratched the back of her neck, unsure of what to do or say.

"That's impossible. You can't possibly make a friend."

Those words made the girl's smile vanish in the air and glare at him. Her embarrassment disappeared and her anger returned once again.

"You can only see other people in terms of whether or not you can kill them. That's how you were raised," that guy was annoying the hell out of her. "You're just confused because you've never met someone like them and don't know what to do. It's not that you really want to be their friend."

"You're wrong..." he said in a soft voice. His blue eyes shone with sadness.

"If you stay with them, eventually you'll get the urge to kill them, just to see if you can actually do it. Because you're born a killer."

"Maybe you're right. But I would never kill neither Gon nor Hitomi," he admitted. "I want to be their friend, and I'd never kill a friend."

The girl couldn't take it anymore, her patience reached its limit. She took a little bit of air and exhaled it to calm herself. Hitomi then took a step forward.

"If fed up with that guy!" she exclaimed. "And with you too! Man, saying that 'I want to be friends' stuff..."

Both of the brothers looked at her, surprised at her sudden appearance. However, she went on seriously.

"Killua, I honestly could care less if this guy is your brother or not, but he's a jerk. If he were a good brother, then he would have to know you better than that."

"You again," Gittarackur said, glaring coldly at her. "What did you mean with you are fed up with us?"

"Exactly what I said, dumbass. First, you messing up with his head," she said. "And second you, Killua, saying that you want to be friends with us...!"

Killua looked down, feeling a little depressed at her words.

"You already are our friend, big idiot!" she completed her sentence.

He was surprised at that statement. He looked at her, in amazement and shock. Hitomi, again, looked at her feet.

"At first... I just thought of him as an annoying kid, nothing more, and I pretended to dislike him. However, as we spend time together, I started to forget that bad feeling about him and I felt another thing like... like _friendship,_ " a warm smile formed in her lips, looking at the shocked boy. "I know that sounded stupid, but it's true. Also, I'm sure that Gon would have said the same thing. You're already part of us, Killua."

Gittarackur was as shocked as Killua, although he didn't show any expression. He placed a hand on his chin and began to think.

"That's a problem. So Hitomi and Gon already consider you a friend, huh?" after a while, he raised a finger. "Okay, then. Guess I'll have to kill them."

Everyone's eyes widened, including the white-haired boy's ones. He struggled to move, but no muscle replied. Something was holding him back.

"An assassin doesn't need friends," he declared, taking out four needles. "They only get in the way."

It looked like he was going for Hitomi first, whose eyes glowed intensely in red, as she held a dagger tightly. As soon as Gittarackur started to walk towards her Kurapika stood in front of his sister with his eyes the same color as her, followed by Leorio and other participants, with the intention of protecting the kid.

"Move," he said, coldly.

"As if," Leorio said, browsing a knife. "We will protect Hitomi and Gon, no matter what."

The boy was about to attack. However, Kurapika spoke quickly.

"You said you needed a license, right?" he said, making Gittarackur stop. "If you kill any of us, you'll fail the Exam and Killua would pass automatically."

He placed a hand on his chin, thinking. Finally, he raised his finger again, indicating he had the answer to his own question.

"I know! I'll pass first and then kill Hitomi and Gon."

Killua's face turned as pale as snow and more sweat ran down his face. The guy asked the president if it was allowed, said that it was correct.

"Did you hear that, Kill? It looks like in order to save your friends, you've got to defeat me. Can you fight me for a friend? You can't do it," he turned around and began walking towards his younger brother. "Because what's more important to you at this moment is whether or not you can defeat me or not, not your friends. And you know the answer already. 'I can't defeat my brother', 'Never go against a superior opponent', I've told you that many times before, haven't I?"

He extended his hand, and instantly Hitomi remembered her fight against Gittarackur. However, Killua didn't move. He didn't touch him. He just spoke.

"I give up," he muttered. "I lose, Illumi."

Everyone was surprised at his reply, while only Hitomi frowned. There was something about him that was nowhere close to normal. He was easily scared.

As if the Killua she knew had vanished into thin air.

"Oh good. No need to fight now then," Illumi put a hand in his brother's shoulder, still feeling Hisoka's killing glare. "I was kidding, Kill. I was never actually going to kill them. But the way you were talking talking was so unexpected, I was just a bit concerned. So I had to test you. My heart was racing there, you know. I'm glad we finally got that cleared up."

After that, he got closer to his ear and whispered something terrible: "You're not qualified to have friends. There's no need for them, either," he said. "Just listen to our dad and myself and do the job as before. And when the time comes for you to get a Hunter License, I'll let you know. But for now, you don't need one."

Like that, Killua lost his soul.

Hitomi and the others looked at the boy, who was walking away. Finally, he leaned himself in a wall. She ran towards to him, followed by Kurapika and Leorio.

"Killua," Kurapika called him.

Then, Hitomi furrowed her eyebrows. His eyes were just... lifeless. They were empty, dull, and they weren't icy blue anymore, they were the darkest shade of blue she had ever seen in her life.

"Come on," Hitomi grabbed his shoulder and shook it. But no avail. "Wake up, Killua."

Even though Kurapika and Leorio tried talking with him, nothing happened. He just stayed there, motionless.

The girl gritted her teeth. In a way, it was sad for her.

A while later, the match between Leorio and Bodoro started. The two were positioned facing each other, ready to fight.

"Start!"

Before anyone could move, blood was already spilled. A hand stabbed Bodoro, before it was withdrawn. The man limply fell into the ground.

Hitomi just watched her friend, whose pale face was stained with crimson blood. His empty, lifeless eyes matched with it perfectly yet in a terrible way.

The girl, in shock, noticed him walking by her and going to the door. She didn't turn around, but heard how it closed itself along Killua's departure.

Killua was gone and, maybe, forever.

 _"It can't end like this..."_

All of sudden, she turned around and ran after him as fast as she could. After a few seconds, she found Killua.

He stood there, just glancing at her. His eyes had already lost the shine they used to have.

"Killua! Where the hell are you going?!" she yelled.

Claws approached her. They stopped there, pressing against her chest but without piercing her skin. Hitomi just stayed here, looking at him fearless. His blue eyes regained their usual bright, but she could see confusion in them.

 _"Good, he's waking up, I guess,"_ she thought.

Instantly, he withdrew his claws and stared at her. He looked like he remembered what happened, because he directed his gaze to his feet.

"Why didn't you dodge it?" he asked, in a soft voice.

"Because I trust you," she said, making him look at her. "You said that before, you'd never kill a friend."

He was taken aback. He stood there, motionless.

"You didn't answer my question," she said. "Where are you going?"

"Home," he murmured.

"Feeling homesick, aren't you?" she joked lightly, before getting serious once again. "Come on, Killua, we both know you hate being there. So, why?"

Killua didn't said anything. Hitomi clenched her fists.

"You know what? Go. I can't hold you back, but I can come after you," she said. "And I _will._ "

"Don't be stupid!" his eyes flew open in worry. "They will kill you."

"It's go or die," she answered, solemnly looking at him. "If I don't go after you, the guilt of not going will kill me."

Killua just looked at her for a couple of seconds. He hid his eyes behind his bangs and started to run away.

 _"I don't deserve this, Hitomi,"_ he thought. _"I don't deserve friends like you and Gon."_

And the door closed behind the boy.

* * *

Hitomi was furious and her eyes were shining in the brightest tone of scarlet you could've ever seen. She kicked the door of the place where they had been in while taking the Exam.

Bodoro had been taken to the hospital, but died shortly after, as they told her.

She stood in front of Illumi, who glanced at her with cold and inexpressive eyes.

"I'm never, never going to forgive you," she told him.

"Why is that? I just did what a good brother does," he replied. "Leading his way."

"Good brother? Yeah right!" she yelled. "You messed up with his head, made him kill Bodoro and obligated him to fail the Exam! You're just leading his way to darkness."

"I don't know what you are talking about."

Anger consumed all of her mind, as the adrenaline made her have the strength enough to kick him in the belly and make him crash with the wall.

"You were the one who made him kill him!" she yelled. "His disqualification is not justified!"

She was about to make her way towards him once again, but Kurapika's strong grip on her shoulder made her unable to do so. Hitomi looked at him and scoffed, looking away.

"Still, I feel the same as her," Leorio told Netero.

"I agree with both," Kurapika added. "Killua's disqualification was totally unfair."

"We can talk about this after the orientation," Netero concluded, stroking his long beard.

* * *

The door opened in an aggressive way. Gon made his way to Illumi, and glared at him, furiously.

"Apologize to Killua," he said.

"Why?" he asked.

"You don't even know what you did wrong? Then you're not qualified to be his brother."

Illumi shot a look to Hitomi, who was glaring at him. Even though she had just calmed down a little, she was still furious about that Killua's stuff.

"Are there any qualifications to be a brother?" Illumi asked.

Angered, Gon grabbed Illumi's arm and threw him upwards. "You don't need qualifications to be friends with someone either."

The boy looked at the door.

"We're going after Killua," he said. "You don't have to apologize now, so just take me where he went."

"What're you going to do?" Illumi asked.

"What else? I'm gonna bring him back!"

"You make it sound as if he was kidnapped," he said. "He walked out of here on his own free will."

That's when Hitomi's patience reached its limit.

"You are the one who made the Killua we knew walk out of our lives, you jerk!" she shouted.

Because of her comment, Gon looked at her friend. After that, the president tried to explain the situation to the boy.

"Actually, we were discussing that very thing, Gon. In fact, Leorio and Kurapika logged a formal complaint. Hitomi did too, but not that _formal_ precisely..."

She scoffed and looked away.

"They all felt that his disqualification was unjustified, and we're trying to get to the bottom of it," Netero said. "Right now, Hitomi was about to express her opinion."

Hitomi nodded her head, and directed her gaze to the ground.

"Since he fighted Illumi, I noticed Killua was acting a little strange. Even when I tried to talk with him his eyes... were dull. He didn't talk to anyone and, the most strange thing, is that he gave up because he was _scared._ The Killua we all know would never do that," she confessed. "Also, when I tried to talk to him about, well... _that,_ he tried to kill me too."

Everyone, except of Killua's brother, looked at her in shock about the last thing. She raised her gaze and glared at Illumi, still in anger.

"That's why I can think about one thing: Killua was being controlled. Illumi himself said 'Never go against a superior opponent', before Killua gave up, it could be the command given at him that time for him to not fight someone stronger than him," she concluded. "Then, why couldn't be that Illumi gave Killua the order to kill Bodoro so he could fail the Exam? I think it's logical to reach that conclusion."

When she finished taking, Kurapika stood up.

"During the match against the so called Gittarackur it became clear to us that Killua was not himself. He could've had been under the influence of hypnosis that resulted in his action," he summarized his sister's words. "Typically, a person can't be forced to kill even in the deepest hypnosis. But with Killua, killing is normal to him. It's not a surprise if he couldn't restrain himself, excepting the instances where a friend of his, like Hitomi, is the victim. That's why he could have hold back."

"The situation gets complicated because it happened during my match with Bodoro. It could've looked like he was trying to help me pass the Exam," Leorio said. "Then in that case, the one who gets disqualified should be me and not Killua."

"In any case, Killua did not act in his own accord," Kurapika concluded. "Therefore, failing him is unjustifiable!"

Netero started to stroke his beard.

"It's all based on assumptions, was no obvious order given to Killua to kill someone. And we can't prove he's been hypnotized either," he replied. "The fact that it happened during Bodoro and Leorio's match isn't much of a problem either. Before the match, I feel that the two of them were even. Bodoro was better at fighting because he had far more experience, but Leorio had more advantage in terms of his flexibility to respond to different situations. Plus Bodoro was badly injured during his previous match against Hisoka. So, Leorio had the upper hand, it wasn't necessary for Killua to help him win."

Hitomi just looked away. That old man was too stubborn.

"This is pointless. There's no point in arguing about it. I know Killua can pass if he tries again. It's too bad he got disqualified this time around, but that's okay," Gon said all of sudden, before glaring at Illumi. "But if you forced Killua to kill people against his will... If you forced Killua to kill such an important friend for him, like Hitomi... Then I'll never forgive you for that!"

"You won't forgive me either?" Illumi glanced again at Hitomi. "So... what will you do?"

"What do you think, big idiot? We're gonna bring Killua back and make sure he never sees you again!" Hitomi jumped in the conversation. "I'll go with Gon, even if he doesn't want to."

Gon looked at her and nodded, determined. A little smirk appeared in Illumi's face and he stretched his hand, like he had done with the other two. After a while, the boy jumped back.

"Well then, everybody. Just like Gon said, everyone has to decide for themselves whether or not they deserve to become a Hunter," Netero said. "You can talk as much as you want, but the Committee will not be overturning any decisions. Killua has failed and all of you have passed."

Hitomi sighed in surrender. It looked like that old man's mind wouldn't change at all after all.

"And now I would like to announce that this year's Hunter Exam is over!" he exclaimed. "On behalf of the Exam Committee, I'd like to congratulate all of you! From now on, you're on your own. You may face many challenges along the way but I want you to believe in yourself and progress forward. All eight of you have passed! You're now licensed Hunters! We have reached the end, you're dismissed."

* * *

That's the end of the chapter! I'm sorry if I made it a little too sad, but that's the way that this part is in the anime. Don't worry because, as you all now, Killua will be just fine in the end :)

Also... Oh my god! That's the first time I get that many reviews! So, thanks to **Mr. Kohen** , **Kri** , **Idea** , **SoulXHunter** , **Shira4** and **MissAssassinGirl11** :) I hope you liked this chapter as well.

There's someone of you that made an suggestion. I'm really grateful for your idea, but I had already thought about Hitomi's Hatsu, which will be revelated later in this story :) And no, it doesn't have to do with fire... Sorry :(

And lastly, I'd like to thank all silent readers out there for... well, _reading_ this story. I wish you liked it as well.

See you all next chapter!


	12. The Dog x The Training x Killua's House!

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 12: The Dog x The Training x Welcome to Killua's House!**

"How's everybody doing? Thank you for choosing the Lamentation Tour," the woman said. "I'll be your guide for the duration of the trip. My name is Coco Loo, please call me Coco-chan! I'm glad to be at your service!"

"Looking forward to your service!" Hitomi heard Leorio shouting behind her.

"Looking forward to killing you..." she murmured, irritated at the annoying woman.

She was just looking at the window, sitting next to Gon. The only thing in her mind was her lost friend, Killua.

His eyes back then, the blood in his face, his claws in front of her chest, in the verge of killing her... the memories of that day didn't let her alone and bombed her mind over and over again. It was like a nightmare she couldn't wake up from.

Hitomi didn't care about anything else, she just wanted her friend back.

"Tell me, Coco-chan," the voice of a man made her snap of her thoughts. "How long is it gonna take us to get to Kukuroo Mountain?"

"We'll be there in about two hours," she replied, still smiling.

"Did you heard that?" he asked his companion. "What should we do, make them step on it?"

"The mountain is not going anywhere, so let's just sit back and relax," he answered, "You can keep going, Coco-chan!"

Hitomi and Gon looked at each other, before sitting backwards to talk to Leorio and Kurapika.

"They don't look like tourists," she commented.

"My guess is that they're bounty hunters who've to try to bring members of the Zoldyck Family for the reward money," Kurapika said.

Gon just stared at them and didn't say anything.

"Please, refrain from standing or sitting backwards while the bus is in motion," the guide said, looking at the kids.

"You're annoying..." Hitomi sighed, "Could you please shut up?"

"I'm sorry that if you don't do as I say, you'll get kicked out," she said, her eyebrow twitching in annoyment.

"I _dare_ you too," she glared at her.

Coco was about to reply, but the child's cold glare refrained her to. She smiled again and looked at the other people in the bus.

"So I thought," Hitomi smirked.

Leorio and Gon looked at the situation in surprise. Kurapika just sighed and looked at the girl.

"Hey, Kurapika," Leorio murmured. "Why is she that creepy all of sudden?"

"It happens when she is really pissed off," Kurapika sighed. "That's why even I fear to make her that furious."

After a long time, Hitomi noticed her friend looking in awe at the window. He was looking at a huge mountain that could be seen from where they were.

"Alright, everyone," Coco said. "If you'll look out the windows to your left, this is Kukuroo Mountain, home to the infamous Zoldyck Family."

The girl smiled to herself. They were so close.

"It's actually an extinct volcano surrounded by a beautiful, old growth forest. Legends has it that the Zoldyck family mansion is located on the summit but no one has ever seen it," she said. "The Zoldyck Family consist of the great grandfather, one set of grandparents, the parents and five children. And they are all assassins!"

A bit after, the bus stopped and they all stood outside to look at the door. That was the principal gate of the Zoldyck, or The Door to Hades, as Coco called it.

"Excuse me.. Uh, Miss?" Gon called over her. "Do you know how we can get inside it?"

"Call me Coco-chan," she asked, before explaining, "Everything beyond that gate is Zoldyck Family property, so this is as far as we go."

Hitomi facepalmed in irritation.

"That rich bastard..." she murmured.

"I had a feeling it wasn't going to be that easy," Kurapika sighed.

"So the land from way out there, _all_ the way here is their yard?!" Leorio shouted in disbelief.

Gon turned to the guide once again.

"Excuse me Miss?... Uh, Miss?" she didn't respond. "Coco-chan?"

"Yes, what is it?" she asked.

"How do I get through the gate?"

A vein popped out on her head, but remained smiling.

"Weren't you listening to what I just said, young man?" she said. "You'll never make it out alive once you get in. This is the home of assassins, remember."

"I'm not buying it!"

The Bounty Hunters of the other time appeared. Long story short, the men tried to destroy the door with bombs, but nothing happened. Despite being told by the gatekeeper that it would be pointless, they attacked him and stole his keys. They stood in front of the gate.

Gon was the first to run to the gatekeeper, who was in the floor. The others followed him after that.

"Listen you two, I wouldn't do that if I were you!" he warned them. "Don't say I didn't warn you!"

As soon as door closed behind the Hunters, the man sighed before standing up.

"Oh, my," he murmured, going to his cabin. "Now they're gonna spoil Mike's appetite."

"Mike?" Gon asked, confused.

"Is that a cat or something?" Leorio asked.

That's when they heard the cries of the Hunters, before the door opened itself. A huge paw appeared, holding two skeletons, without a bit of meat.

"I think that Mike isn't some kitty," Hitomi said.

"That's the last of our problems!" Leorio shouted.

She shrugged. All of the others of the tour panicked, and went to the bus. As soon as Gon told them they all were staying there, they were gone.

* * *

Once inside of the gatekeeper office, the man listened to the four of them and sighed.

"Friends, huh? It's been a very long time since I last heard that word," he smiled. "My name's Zebro, and I've been working here for twenty years, but you guys are the first to come here as friends. And it warms my heart... it really does."

They all smiled at him.

"As an employee of the family, I probably shouldn't be saying this, but this is a very desolate place. No one ever comes to visit them," he said, before pointing at the skeletons behind his back. "Except for guys like that, of course, which we get plenty of."

"Nice people, aren't they?" Hitomi muttered, sarcastically.

"It's a cursed profession, don't you think?" Zebro chuckled. "Well, it was very nice of you to come all his way for a visit. Thank you very much."

He bowed at them and they looked at him, in uneasiness.

"I'm sorry, but there's still no way I can allow you to pass through those gates," he said. "You saw that big paw earlier, right? That belongs to Mike, the Zoldyck Family guard dog. It's not a friendly dog and it only takes orders from family members. It's still acting on orders given by its master over ten years ago, 'Kill the intruders'. So I can't let you in, as long as Mike's on the job, especially if you're Master Killua's friends, I can't let you get killed. "

"But why doesn't Mike attack you?" Kurapika asked. "You have keys to the gate, which means you go inside. Then why doesn't Mike attack you?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Leorio said. "He works here as a gatekeeper."

"But he just say that Mike isn't friendly dog, and that he doesn't take orders from anyone other than family members," Kurapika explained, before looking at Zebro."You also said that the orders for him is to kill the intruders. I may be wrong, but under that order even the employees wouldn't be safe on the other side."

"You make a good point, but you've only guessed half of it," he replied.

Hitomi noticed something and stared at the keys, making her mind run quickly. Her eyes opened slightly when she got it.

"You have too many keys for one door, like provoking the ones who break him in here... like a trap." she reasoned. "That isn't the real gate, it just exist for those fools like the others to be killed by Mike. So the command is just to kill those who doesn't enter from the real gate."

"It's pretty clever, don't you think?" he smirked.

"I get it," Kurapika said. "You're not really a gatekeeper."

"You're right, I'm not actually a gatekeeper. I'm just the guy who cleans up after Mike."

"So the door..." Hitomi's eyes flew open in realization. "It's not even locked!"

"You two are really intelligent."

Then they walked out the room and stood in front of the gate. Leorio tried to open it, but he just failed to do so.

"These doors won't budge no matter what I do!" he yelled.

"That's because you're not pushing hard enough," Zebro said.

"You are crazy? I'm giving it everything I've got!"

"This gate is also known as 'The Testing Gate'. If you can't even open it, then you have no business entering the Zoldyck property," he then took of his jacket. "Now, please watch."

Zebro took a long breath, before pushing the gate. It opened but when he released it slammed shut.

"Every year it gets a little harder for me to do that, I'm desperate to keep up because once I'm unable, I'm fired," he said, before looking at Hitomi. "You got it exactly, young woman. 'Do not attack anyone who enters the property through The Testing Gate', that's the order Mike's been given."

She smirked, before looking at Leorio, who was still trying to open the door.

"By the way, the doors of that first gate weight about two tons each," he said, and then they realized that there were more that just one door, "There are seven gates in all and with each additional gate, the weight is doubled. What gate number you open depends on how strong you can push."

"So every time that a family member return to home they have to push the door..." Hitomi said, all of sudden, her curiosity increasing. "So, how many doors did Killua open last time?"

"When Master Killua came home, he was able to open up the third gate," Zebro told her.

"The third gate... That's twelve tons!" Gon exclaimed in amazement.

"Actually, it's sixteen, Gon," Kurapika corrected him.

Hitomi stared at the gate for a bit and sighed. Maybe, just _maybe_ , Killua was stronger than she had given him the credit for.

"Do you get it now? Just trying to get in takes this much effort," Zebro said. "They live in a completely different world."

"I guess there's nothing we can do," Kurapika murmured.

"Of course there is! We can just call Killua and ask him to open it from inside," Gon said, happily. "Zebro-san, could you call Killua for us and tell him that Gon, Hitomi, Kurapika and Leorio are here to see him?"

Zebro refused at first, but after a while he budged and called the buttler's house. He got scolded after that.

"Zebro-san, can you call again?" Gon asked. "I'll talk to him this time."

The man called again and gave the phone to Gon. Hitomi put her ear closer to the phone, to overhear the conversation.

"Hello, you've reached the Zoldyck Butler Quarters," a man picked up.

"Hello? My name is Gon and I'm Killua's friend," he said. "Can I speak to him please-?"

"Killua-sama doesn't have any friends," he said coldly, before hanging up.

Hitomi sighed and calmly grabbed the phone. She dialed the same number again and pressed the phone against her ear.

"Hello, you've reached-"

"HOW DO YOU KNOW THAT KILLUA DOESN'T HAVE ANY FRIENDS?!" she yelled, pissed off. The others jumped back, surprised at her sudden outburst. "If you don't put Killua on the phone right now, I'm going to find the way to blow up the whole mountain _right now!_ "

"May I know your name, Miss?" he asked.

"Hitomi," she answered, icily.

"Let's assume for a moment that Killua-sama is, in fact, friends with someone named Hitomi. But there's no way for me to know that you really are her."

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched in annoyment, Gon put his ear closer to the phone to hear as well.

"Maybe, if you put Killua on the phone, he could tell," she said.

"You mean by the sound of your voice?"

And then they heard Hitomi's last sentence, they looked at each other in surprise.

"It was just a recording, but there are so many other ways to imitate someone's voice. Also, there are ways to make yourself look like someone else. Who knows, someone after Killua-sama could be using Hitomi to get to him. Assassination is the family business, naturally this creates a lot of enemies. But it's my job to make sure those enemies don't get anywhere near them."

"But if you continue like this, you'll never get to an end. What happens if the boy who is in there isn't Killua and tries to kill you all?" she asked. "What if I am, indeed Killua but I can't reveal myself to you because of a threat? And what if-?"

"This conversation isn't having any sense," he replied.

"So I think," she remarked. "And every time you open your mouth, its sense become lesser. Saying that I have to be tested to see my friend-"

"I'm sorry, but you'll have to leave."

And after that, he hung up. Both kids looked at each other and nodded, before storming out the room. Gon started to swing his fishing rod around.

"Gon, lend me the rod once you climbed the gate," Hitomi said.

The boy nodded, attaching the rope to the door. Kurapika and Leorio tried to convince them not to go, but it was fruitless. After a while, Zebro agreed to open the door for them.

And that's how they met Mike.

Hitomi froze at the sight of the enormous, white hunt-dog. His cold yellow eyes focused in her violet ones, like he was analyzing her. She released then the air she didn't know she was holding when he turned to the others.

"S-So, this is Killua's pet?" Hitomi said, sarcastically but still stunned. "How _cute_."

"He's like a machine," Kurapika added.

"Exactly," Zebro said. "Well, we should probably get moving. The servant's quarters aren't too far from here."

They started walking and after a couple of minutes, they arrived to the place.

"Go ahead and open the doors. You just gotta push," Zebro told them.

Gon tried to push it, but he couldn't do it. Well, they weighed 200 kg each after all. Pissed off, Hitomi stood in front of the door and pushed it. After a while, it opened but when she released it, the door closed itself, making her stumble backwards and fall in her butt on the ground.

"That hurts!" she exclaimed, putting her hand in her sore nose.

"They slam shut, just like the Testing Gate," Zebro explained.

"Yeah, I realized that. Thank you very much," Hitomi replied, annoyed.

Once they came in, they put on slippers. They tried to took a step, but they all fell face first in the floor. And then Zebro told them that their weight was 20 kg each one.

" _So the annoying woman was right..."_ she thought, annoyed. " _This is the Hades..."_

* * *

Zebro gave Leorio a cup of tea and he accepted. However, when he took it, he almost lost his balance.

"What's wrong?" Gon asked Leorio.

"You'll see. Go ahead and pick it up," he told them.

They tried, but it was like the cup was stuck in the table. Hitomi's eyebrow twitched, losing her patience.

"It's like _all-day_ training!" the girl complained.

"Well, that's true," Zebro replied. "In order to live here, we have to train ourselves constantly."

"The inside of the Testing Gate sure isn't suited for average people," Kurapika commented.

"Hey, we're Hunters!" Leorio exclaimed. "We can't be scared off so easily, right?"

And after all the guy tried to drink his tea, but fell backwards because its weight. Hitomi shook her head and decided to not to try it. She placed the cup back in the table.

"You are Hunters?" Siquant, another worker, asked.

"Yeah, we are all Hunters!" Gon replied, happily.

"Oh, big deal. Even if you got a Hunter license that doesn't mean much, there are lots of times when it's completely useless. I was watching you just now. I bet you didn't even open the Testing Gate, did you?" he said and they all remained silent. "That's what I thought. If you can't even open the gate, you have no business being here."

Leorio was really pissed off right now.

"If I open the Testing Gate, will you take that back?!" he yelled.

"I'm gonna do it too! I'll keep on trying until I open the Testing Gate," Gon said. "I just feel like, if I can't even open that gate maybe I don't deserve to talk to someone in the Zoldyck family."

"Well, I'm in as well," Hitomi smirked. "I won't bear the thought of Killua being _that_ far away from me in strength. At least, I have to open one door."

"I know," Kurapika said. "I'm just worried we won't have enough time."

"That's right!" Leorio poked Gon's forehead. "I seem to remember young imbecile didn't wanna use his Hunter License so entered the country on a tourist visa."

"So, that means that we have a maximum of a month," Hitomi sighed. "That's impossible."

"It's not," Zebro told them.

They all looked at him, cluelessly.

"You four are too young, so we should have enough time," he said. "Would you like to train here with me at the house?"

"Can we?" Gon asked.

"If you'd like to," he nodded.

"Let's do it!" Gon exclaimed.

"Thank you very much," Kurapika replied, politely.

"I'm ready for it!" Leorio exclaimed.

"Well, let's hell begin!" Hitomi smirked.

* * *

The chapter ends here!

Thanks to all the people who reviewed last chapter! I hope you liked this chapter as well :)

Also, to the other readers, thanks for pay this chapter a visit as well. Let's hope you enjoyed this chapter too!

See you all later!


	13. I Won't Betray My Friends! x Butler x Hi

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 13: I Won't Betray My Friends! x Butler Service x Hi, Killua!**

A lot happened in the twenty days they have been in the house. Training, being nearly killed by Mike, training and... oh, yeah, _training._

But it wasn't fruitless. They all became able to open the Testing Gate with any problems. Hitomi felt relieved at that.

"Zebro-san, Seaquant-san, thank you so much for all your help!" Gon said.

"Don't mention it," Zebro smiled, before pointing at some road ahead. "Now, follow the path that leads up the mountain. I believe it will eventually take you to the Zoldyck house."

"You don't know?" Leorio said, confused.

"No, to be honest I've never been to the house," he smiled nervously. "Sorry I can't be of much help here."

"You've done enough," Kurapika said.

"Yeah, take care," Hitomi smiled.

And they walked away. After a long way, they came across with a red-haired girl, who was holding a staff.

"Who are you?" Gon asked, but she didn't answer him.

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched when she realized that she was in the middle of the way. She was the next obstacle.

"I'm Gon," he introduced himself. "And these are my friends Hitomi, Kurapika and Leorio. We're trying to find the mansion-"

"Go home," the girl cut Gon off. "You're on private property. You do not have permission to be here."

"Come on, Red, Gon had already told you our names, didn't he? So, can't you tell us yours?" she asked. "Unless you want me to still call you Red..."

"I have no desire to know your names myself," she answered. "Let me tell you one more time. Leave is the Zoldyck Estate. No one enters without permission."

She drew a line in the ground with her staff and told them that they couldn't cross it. Gon, however, walked to her and once his feet stepped on it, she hit him and he flew backwards.

At the same time, Hitomi jumped high. She smirked, thinking that 'Red' hadn't seen her. That's when her eyes flew open.

Tucked in the tree, she could see a green skateboard leaning on it. She nearly gasped in recognition of it.

 _"That is Killua's-!"_

But then, the red-haired girl appeared in front of her and hit her face, knocking her unconscious in the ground. Kurapika ran to her, in worry, and put his arms around his little sister's body.

"The only thing we wanna do is see Killua," Gon said.

"You may not believe it, but we're his friends," Kurapika added. "The four of us met him during the Hunter Exam."

"That's irrelevant," the girl said. "Your reasons for being here mean absolutely nothing to me. I have my orders from my employer. It's that simple."

"Oh, gimme a break!" Leorio said. "It seems to me like you're just another version of Mike."

"Exactly."

That's when Kurapika realized that Hitomi had come to, because she got free from his grasp. She stood in front of her, with a serious expression.

"Why do you have Killua's skateboard?" she asked, pointing to the tree.

They all turned to the tree she pointed and gaped in disbelief. Gon stared at it for a moment, before standing at her friend's side.

"Killua-sama gave it to me as a present," she replied.

"He gave it to you?" Gon asked, surprised. "Why?"

"He didn't tell me why, he just gave it to me."

"I'm sorry, but that's a little hard for us to believe because during the Hunter Exam he hardly ever went anywhere without that thing," Leorio said.

"More than that, he's rarely been seen without it since he got it as a child," she said.

"In any case!" Leorio was annoyed. "The fact that Killua loved that skateboard is certain. And I for one don't think he'd just give it to someone without some kind of explanation! We have no intention of fighting you here, we just want to pass through. However, if something happened here that forced Killua to leave his precious skateboard, and if we find you had anything to do with that, then... we won't hold back."

Hitomi was surprised, that man was defending Killua and she had thought he hated him so much... She thought about teasing him, but noticed that maybe, it wasn't the best moment to do so.

 _"About crossing the line... what can I do?"_ Hitomi turned serious again. _"I can't try for above again... That hurt awfully a lot!"_

Gon's feet crossed the line, and 'Red' wanted to hit him. Without thinking, Hitomi put herself in the way, making both of them fly backwards again.

Both of them stood up not long after that.

"Please, guys, don't do anything," Gon asked. "Leave this to me."

"To us," Hitomi corrected with a smirk. "I won't give up that easily to Red."

Gon nodded. Hitomi remained silent and stared at the girl.

 _"I have to do something to cross,"_ she thought. _"She have to have some weak point and I must find it."_

They both stepped in the line, one in each side. Hitomi was planning to duck, but that's when she realized that the girl was too fast...

That meant that speed was _not_ her weak point.

Gon continued to recklessly cross the line from the front, but he hit several times. Hitomi tried too in different fronts, but got as injured as her friend.

The sun was setting, and Hitomi felt herself panicking at her lack of new ideas. However, she didn't gave up. She was as determined as Gon to see Killua.

"Enough, please stop," the girl pleaded after a while, before looking at the other two, "Why don't you stop them? Aren't you their friends-?"

She stopped in mid sentence at the sight of their faces. Their eyes shone, making her understand that they too were determined to see the Zoldyck boy as well.

"Who are you?" Gon asked, like the first time. "You didn't tell me before... So, who are you?"

"Me? I'm a servant's apprentice of the Zoldyck Family," she replied.

"He didn't ask you _what_ you are, he asked you _who_ you are," Hitomi said. "I'm curious too, I can't still call you Red, you know."

She hesitated, and both kids walked closer to her.

"Who are you?" they asked in union.

"I'm... Kanaria..." she whispered.

"I see, so you are Kanaria-san," Gon smiled.

"I answered your question, will you please leave now?"

"Well, you see Kanaria," Hitomi smiled. "We've come all this way to see Killua. Please, could you let us through?"

At the mention of Killua's name, Kanaria's eyes softened for a brief moment. However, she regained her composure right after that.

And Hitomi just stared at her expression.

"Killua-sama is the heir of the Zoldyck Family. He's not someone any ordinary person can just come and visit as they please," Kanaria spoke, "And besides people like you aren't qualified to be his friends."

"To be friend with someone you don't need qualifications," Gon said, and the girl seemed confused at it. "I told Killua's brother the same thing. You don't qualify to be a friend, you just are."

Hitomi saw her eyes directing to her staff, before arguing with Gon again. That's when she realized that, inside the ball, there was a skull... she thing that she saw that tenderly at Killua's mention.

"You know that story you told us about Killua giving you his skateboard?" Gon said. "I'm starting to think it's true."

"You're wrong, he didn't really give me that skateboard as a gift," she said. "He just dropped it there."

"But he did give you something," Hitomi said. "That skull in your staff, it was a gift, isn't it?"

Kanaria looked at it again, in surprise. She looked at them, speechless.

"Who are you?" Gon asked once again. "We are Gon Freecss and Hitomi Kuruta. Killua is a friend of us and we came here in order to see him."

"I'm... a servant to the Zoldyck Family and..." she murmured.

"It's Ka-na-ria! You're _Kanaria_ , first and foremost," Hitomi said, before taking a step closer to her, crossing the line and taking one of her hands in hers. She smiled kindly. "And, also, you're Killua's friend, aren't you?"

Kanaria stared at her in shock, before trembling slightly.

"Killua-sama spoke me kindly like an equal but then I... I said terrible things to him," she said.

"You're kind as well," Gon said, standing at the other side of Hitomi, passing the line as well. "You're different than Mike. No matter how hard you try to deny your feelings, they're still there."

The girl stopped trembling and unconsciously squeezed Hitomi's hand. Tears began to flow, dropping from her green eyes.

"Please..." she pleaded. "Please help Killua-sama."

Not a heartbeat later, she was shot from somewhere and slipped from Hitomi's grasp, falling unconscious in the floor. The blonde girl kneeled down next to her, as well as Leorio.

"It's okay," Leorio said, after checking her up. "She just passed out."

Hitomi sighed in relief, before turning her head towards to the two people who had shot her. A kid in kimono and a bandaged woman, with a google-like thing in her eyes, but it looked like a robot or something like that.

The red dot on it became green all of sudden.

"You must be Hitomi and you Gon," she said, looking at the kids. "Illumi's told me all about you two. Kill is also aware that you have ventured into premises. He asked me to pass along a message."

"Message?" Hitomi got curious.

"Thank you for visiting me. It makes me really happy," somehow, Killua's words echoed in all their ears. "But, right now... I can't see you. Sorry."

Hitomi clenched her fists, but remained silent.

"My goodness! I almost forgot to introduce myself!" the woman suddenly said. "I'm Killua's mother."

 _"Killua's mommy is a mummy?"_ Hitomi thought, with a straight expression.

The mother pointed at the kid in her right.

"And he's Kalluto."

 _"He?!"_ her face fell. _"Oh my god, I think I have apologize to Kurapika for calling him a girl all these years... and this time for real."_

Killua's family was really strange. Now, she was sure about that.

"As Killua said in his message he's in no condition to see you right now," Killua's mother said. "Can I ask you to leave and come another day?"

"You can't," Hitomi just said and the mother glared at her. "I'm just going to drag him out of here if he doesn't want to see us."

"But I was wondering if you could tell us why he couldn't see us," Gon asked.

"Because he's in solitary confinement," she replied, but all of sudden the light in her eyes became yellow and started to shout out of blue, "Kil... Killua is gone?! What are you doing, Grandpa?! He should be still chained up!"

Hitomi looked at Kurapika with a raised eyebrow and he just shook his head.

"Please excuse me, I have an urgent matter to attend to," she said, calming down. "Please come again."

And she got away with her son.

 _"First she is telling us to leave and now she tells us to come again?_ " Hitomi thought in disbelief. _"Mummy, cyborg and now bipolar... I'm starting to feel bad for Killua."_

After that, Kanaria regained consciousness and, despite the problems she would get, she guided them to the butler's house.

* * *

Killua found himself laughing. Even though it was the first time ever he had a talk with his father, he found it really enjoyable.

"And then you know what Gon said to Hanzo?" he exclaimed. "He said, 'I don't want to have my legs chopped off but I don't want to give up either.' He's so selfish!"

Silva laughed again, being drawn in his son's experiences.

"He sounds like a funny kid, this Gon," he said. "And what about that other kid you mentioned, Hitomi?"

"She is so annoying!" he said, like it left a bad taste in his mouth. "She thinks too highly of herself, but she is just an idiot. Can you believe it? She had never tasted _chocolate_ in her life because 'it is too _brown_ '. I even had to make her drink from my own cup!"

"That girl is special, isn't she?" he smirked.

"... Maybe," he murmured, gazing at the ground. "After that, in the Last Phase, Illumi appeared and... you know all about that. The thing that surprised me the most was that she... defended me from him."

The father laughed harder, making Killua look at him in confusion.

"I think I have to correct myself. That girl is special for _you_. Did something happened that you want to tell me about?" he teased. "Maybe you took advantage of her ignorance of chocolate to do... _that?_ Oh my, I didn't know my son was such a pervert."

"No way! With that dummy?!" he shouted in disgust, trying to hide the blush in his cheeks. "That's gross..."

Killua looked away, speechless. Silva laughed again at his son's actions, but after awhile the man's look became serious.

"Kill. Do you want to see your friends?" he said, making his son look at the ground once again, "There's nothing to be afraid of, just be honest with me."

"I am not qualified to be their friends anymore. We got along great, but I left them. I left my friends," he confessed. "Even when Hitomi, who I thought so lowly about, was standing there, defending me from Illumi... I left her. Even when I tried to kill her, she still kept calling me a friend... and I left her."

"Is that the reason you can't see them?" Silva asked, he nodded. "Why do you suppose she defended you and forgave you that easily after trying to kill her? Why do you suppose they _all_ have risked their lives to enter the Zoldyck Estate?"

His eyes directed back to his father, who smiled kindly.

"Instead of regretting what you've done in the past, why don't you be honest with your current feelings?" he asked, before softly ruffling his child's hair. "You may be my son, however you have your own life to live. Follow your path and, if that doesn't work out, you can always come back. Alright?"

Silva took out his hand and looked at Killua in a serious expression.

"I'll ask you again... Do you want to see your friends?" this time, Killua nodded in conviction. "I understand, you're free to do as you please. But you must sweat to one thing," he bit his finger, letting one drop of blood get out the small wound. "Swear that you'll never betray them, okay?"

The boy stared at his father for a little, before doing the same as him. He pressed his thumb against his father's, creating a pact, impossible to break.

"I swear, I won't betray them," he promised, "Never."

* * *

Back at Hitomi and the others, they reached the butler's house. Gotoh told them to play a game, about a coin. However, as time passed by, it turned to be not a game anymore. They threatened them to kill Kanaria if they got it wrong.

Leorio then failed.

Next one, Kurapika.

And then, Gotoh brought two more butlers to play with him.

"Now then, who of us three has the coin?"

Hitomi was now in trouble. She had not idea of what to say. She had, approximately, a 33.3 percent to choose the right one... but the approximately 66.6 percent was enough to creep the hell out of her.

If she and Gon were both wrong, they would be dead.

And who was going to tell Killua that his friends were all dead?

She thought she was lucky for not being one of them, even though that could mean that she wouldn't be alive then.

"Gotoh has it!" she said, in panic.

"The one in the right!" Gon said.

The girl resigned, she was sure that Gon more likely could be right. However, she got surprised when Gotoh's left hand opened, showing the coin.

"Wait, I got it right?" she blinked.

"It seems so..." Gon said. "I'm sorry I got it wrong."

"It's not that..." she sighed. "Oh, well."

She was _all_ alone now.

Gotoh flipped the coin once again and after a quick movement, it disappeared.

"Who has the coin?"

Hitomi stared at all of them, searching for something to be right in her guess. She then realized that Gotoh expression... was somehow relaxed.

Or at least, more relaxed than the last time.

Maybe, he was sure she would fail.

 _"Wait, he didn't say 'who of us three has the coin?' or something like that,"_ she thought. _"That means..."_

A smirk crossed her face, as she turned around to see the one who was pointing at her with a knife. She stretched her hand to him.

"Please, can you give me the coin?" she asked, politely.

They all opened their eyes widely, even Gotoh. The butler behind her put a hand in his pocket and took off a coin. He gave it to her.

"Here you have it," she said, placing it over the table. "Did we win?"

Kanaria was released and, unexpectedly, they all started to applaud them. The four of them looked at each other, cluelessly.

"Hey, Gotoh!" Killua's voice rang in their ears.

"Killua!" Gon and Hitomi shouted in unison.

One of the butlers walked towards the door, maybe looking for Killua. Gotoh looked at them, smiling for the first time.

"It seems we took things a little too far. I deeply apologize," he said. "But you have to admit, it did help us pass the time, didn't it?"

"So what you said earlier was to make the game more fun?" Kurapika asked.

"Yes," he nodded.

"It was so fun!" Hitomi rolled her eyes. "I really enjoy the thought of that if I lose the game, then I lose my head... literally."

Even Killua's butlers were creepy...

The door opened and Hitomi's face lightened up when she saw her friend standing there, looking at them.

She couldn't help but jump off her seat along Gon and run towards him.

"Killua!" they shouted.

"Hitomi, Gon!" he exclaimed before running as well.

And then they stood in front of him. That's when Hitomi realized how much scratches he had in his pale face.

"It's been a while! Thanks for coming all the way!" Killua said, before looking at their faces. "What happened? Both your faces are a mess!"

"So it's yours!" Gon grinned.

Hitomi's face turned serious all of sudden and put her index finger in his forehead. He froze at her sudden actions and stared at her with a puzzled expression.

She then started to poke him with it, in a painful way.

"Idiot. Do you know how much we were worried about you? You didn't even left us a message," she began, poking him every time she said a word. "Oh, sorry, we got a message, in which you said that you didn't want to met us! Is there something in your head?!"

He jumped back and rubbed his sore forehead. After a while, a smirk appeared in his face.

"Aww... How touching!" he said, teasing her. "You were worried about _me?_ "

"No!" she flushed and pouted. "Well... yeah. But Gon was worried too!"

Her pout disappeared a little after that and smiled warmly. Deep inside her, she was worried about him. It was nice to see his old self once again.

Kurapika and Leorio walked to them.

"And you guys came too, eh... Kurapika and Reolio!" Killua teased.

"It's Leorio!" Leorio said, in annoyment.

"So we get the side treatment?..." Kurapika murmured under his breath.

"Oh yeah, we should get going right away. I don't even care where we go," Killua said. "If I stay here, my mom would bother me again," he turned to Gotoh, "Oh, right, Gotoh? Listen. No matter what my mom told you, I don't want you following me!"

"As you wish, Master," he replied. "Please be careful."

Just when they turned around to go away, Kanaria interrupted them with Killua's skateboard in her hands.

"It's fine," he smiled. "You hang onto it for me, Kanaria. See you!"

* * *

Once in the train, Gon told them all about Gotoh's making that coin-thing once again, just to prove him how unfair world could be.

"I know, he got me with that one, too," Killua said. "When he revealed his trick, it was so infuriatingly simple.

"I think I got it," Hitomi smirked, before flipping a coin in the air. "Which one?"

"Which? I mean, it's in your left hand," Gon replied.

"Well, it isn't," she just said, showing that the coin was in her right one.

Gon stared at her, cluelessly. Hitomi took a coin out of her sleeve and gave them both to Kurapika. He did the same as her.

"In short, Gotoh had two coins with him. He concealed one coin in his right hand while he flipped the second one," he said, before flipping the coin in the air. "He catches it with left hand in the way you would see. When he asks you to guess which hand the coin is in, he raises his arms so you can only see the back of his hands."

"And the coin slips into his sleeve," Hitomi finished her brother's explanation. "Then you lose and he chops your head off. Game over."

"Ah!" Gon shouted, in irritation and surprise.

"That's right!" Killua said. "But to be fair, he probably only used that trick for the last one. Even though it's just a game, Gotoh doesn't like to cheat."

* * *

After arguing a _long_ time with Kurapika, Hitomi was allowed to sleep in the same bed as the _boys_ \- Killua and Gon - because there weren't any more beds, but just for that _only_ night.

Her brother could be a little annoying and overprotective sometimes, but that could just be his way to express his love for her.

At the end, she didn't really mind.

She, like her friends, leaned herself in her belly, looking through the window.

"Gotoh is a nice guy, isn't he?" Gon commented.

"I don't know what kind of person he is," he replied. "All I know is that he's honest."

"He looks like he is the type to creep the hell out of you when he is angry," Hitomi commented.

"He sure is!" Killua said. "That look alone gives me nightmares!"

They stayed in silence for a little.

"I'm glad," Gon broke the quietness. "We got to see you again, Killua."

"That's bad," Hitomi said, sarcastically. "For a while I thought we'd never meet again."

"True. I thought I'd maybe never see you again myself."

"But now, we should be together for a while," Gon said.

Hitomi smiled sadly, even though she was happy for them to be together. The thought of not seeing them again stabbed in her chest.

Maybe, this was the last night with them.

"Yeah, even my dad gave me an okay," Killua said. "And after that warning I gave Gotoh, we have nothing to worry about. We can go wherever you want."

That's when she realized both boys looking at her. She blushed at the sudden attention she was having from them.

"What?" Hitomi asked, a little annoyed.

"What are you gonna do?" Gon asked her.

"I think I'll have to start looking for the Scarlet Eyes," she said, shrugging. "And maybe came up with an idea what to do with the vengeful and suicidal side of my brother."

"That means we will not see each other for a while," Killua said.

"Well..." she glanced at the window. "Yeah."

That's when she felt herself being pushed out of the bed. Both boys were ruffing her hair in a playful way.

"What are you doing?" she said, annoyed.

"We will miss you!" Gon exclaimed.

"Yeah, but annoying you it's the thing I'll miss the most," Killua's cat ears popped out his head.

"It's touching!" she said, doing the same they had been doing with her.

* * *

"What are your plans, Gon?" Leorio asked him.

"Are you going to look for your father, or are you going home first?" Kurapika inquired.

"Neither," he said, taking Hisoka's plate of his pocket. "I'm gonna punch Hisoka in the face, than give him back his ID Badge. I can't even think about finding my dad or visiting Mito-san until I've dealt with that."

"Is that so?" Killua said. "And do you know where to find Hisoka?"

Gon face fell and Hitomi facepalmed.

"Idiot," Killua murmured.

"I know where you can find him, Gon. Hisoka told me so himself after the Exam," Kurapika said. "He'll be in Yorkshin City, on September 1st."

"But September 1st is still six months away," Gon said.

"Is there anything going on in Yorkshin City then?" Killua asked.

Leorio snapped his fingers in realization.

"There's an auction, the biggest in the world!" he said.

"That's right. From September 1st to 10th, they're auctioning off a vast collection of the most rare and valuable artifacts from every country in the world," Kurapika explained and his sister narrowed her eyes. "They attract all sorts of seasoned collectors and men from all avenue of life seeking to satisfy their greed."

"Will the Scarlet Eyes be there?" Hitomi asked.

"It's entirely possible," Kurapika said. "And the Genei Ryodan too."

"Then, Kurapika, Hitomi, you..." Gon trailed off.

He looked at him and smiled a little bit.

"Yeah, I'm afraid this is where we part ways. We did meet Killua again," he said. "And I have to make some money if I want to participate in the auction."

Hitomi blinked, questioning herself if she had heard it well.

"I must start looking in earnest for employers to hire me as a Hunter."

Yeah, he said it. He said _'I'_. First person of the singular.

Only _one_.

"I'm going with you," she said, staring at him.

"I'll go alone," he replied. "Probably, I'll have to get involved in a job where I have many superior people and I know very well that you are not up to living under the orders of others."

"But..." she murmured. "You'll do something _really_ stupid. I can feel it."

Kurapika chuckled before kneeling down next to her and putting his hand on the top of her head. He smiled kindly.

"Let's make a deal," he told her. "You start to look for the Scarlet Eyes in your own. Once you get a pair of them, I'll let you come with me. Until then, we will work alone."

"Then, can you come with us, Hitomi?" Gon asked, happily.

"It's that okay with you guys?" she looked at them.

"Of course, idiot," Killua smirked. "You're our friend."

She smiled briefly at them, before looking at her brother. He stood up.

"But I don't want you to rush. Search for Gon's father if you want, make yourself stronger," he told her, "You don't have to hurry, the eyes will appear in your way, even if you don't want to."

"I won't," she nodded. "You take care too."

"Let's meet again in Yorkshin City, Kurapika!" Gon exclaimed, happily.

Leorio smirked.

"Then I think I'll be going back home," he said.

"You're leaving too?!" Gon said, disappointed.

"Well, from the start my objective was to be a doctor," he showed them his Hunter License. "Now, thank to this, I won't have to pay the outrageous tuition fees. So I'm gonna get home and hit those books hard!"

"You better do that," Hitomi smirked. "If not, I'll be the one to hit you, right in your head!"

"Do your best!" Gon exclaimed.

"We'll meet up again," he said. "The next time it will be September 1st... in Yorkshin City!"

"Sure thing," Hitomi said.

"I'm looking forward it," Kurapika said.

They all smiled widely. Kurapika put a hand in the center and Hitomi put hers in top of his. Killua did the same, as well as Gon and Leorio.

Their paths were dividing right now, but everyone of them knew that, even if it wasn't September 1st, they were going to meet again.

After all, it was impossible to broke such a strong bond of friendship they all held.

* * *

End of this chapter!

I'm sorry if some of you didn't like the fact that I used 'Kuruta' as Hitomi's surname. However, I'll use it like that from now on.

Thanks to **SlightlyYandereMelissa** and **JokeLover123** for reading this story! I hope that you enjoyed this chapter :)

I wish that the other readers liked it so far :)

See you later!


	14. Heavens Arena x To the Top x What's Nen?

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 14:** **Heavens Arena x To the Top x What's Nen?**

"It's just the three of us now," Gon told them. "So? What do you wanna do?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Killua asked. "We've gotta start training!"

"Huh? I thought we'd do something fun."

"If you think that suicide is what you call 'fun', go ahead," Hitomi said, facepalming. "Forget the six months, you won't even touch him in a decade!"

Gon looked at them, cluelessly. Killua, meanwhile, took a stick and draw Hisoka and Hanzo, near to each other.

"Let's put it simple. This is Hisoka and his is Hanzo. If the distance between them represents the difference in their fighting ability, then I would put you..." he said, before drawing a long, _long_ line. After a few meters, he shouted. "... right here! And that's being really generous!"

"Then, where would you put you, Killua?!" he shouted, annoyed.

He seemed to think about it a little bit, before drawing himself in the middle of the line. He smirked, proud of himself. And that's when he realized Hitomi drawing herself a little ahead him.

"Then, there I am," she said, proudly. Killua's eyebrow twitched a little.

"Then, I should put me here," he said, doing the same.

She glared at him and put herself before him once again, making Killua do the same as her. Gon smiled nervously, staring at the huge cloud of dust they had made.

"Umm..." he said, sweatdropping. "Guys?"

At the calling of their friend, they both stopped to see what had they done. The two kids were pointing at the same spot, a few meters ahead Hisoka.

"If only it was true..." Hitomi murmured.

* * *

After a while discussing about it, the three decided to go to the Heavens Arena, a place where they could train and get money at the same time.

Hitomi stood in front of the huge man, who was supposed to be her opponent. The guy just raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"A little girl?" he said, not believing it. "Are you _serious?_ "

"I don't think I need to, _old man_ ," she teased.

"The purpose of the first floor match is to evaluate each of your skill levels," the referee explained. "You have a three minute time limit to demonstrate how strong you really are."

"Three minutes? Maybe three seconds," he said.

"My thoughts exactly…" Hitomi murmured, before raising her thumb and her index finger. "I'll make it easy for you. I'll use just these two fingers."

"Don't kid with me," he smirked. "Well, let's play then."

The man started to run towards her and she raised her right hand.

One…

Two…

Once he reached her, she flicked his forehead. The fighter flew backwards and collided painfully with the wall.

 _Three._

"You were right," she grinned, "Three seconds."

She turned around to face the referee, who was the only person in the whole stadium to be quiet.

"You may advance to the 50th floor," he said, giving her a ticket.

She smiled, before making her way to the boys, who were going to the same floor. They three made a high-five.

"Osu!"

They all turned to see a small boy, who they had seen lately. He, too, advanced to the 50th floor.

* * *

The elevator girl continued talking, but no one was listening at her. The four boys just continued talking to each other.

"My name is Zushi," the little boy said. "What are your names?"

"I'm Gon, nice to meet you."

"I'm Killua," he introduced himself.

"Hitomi," she smiled politely.

"Osu, nice to meet you all!" he replied.

Finishing her long talk, the woman turned around to them.

"… So, do you understand?"

"Yes!" they all said in union.

However, she was well aware that they hadn't heard one word of the speech she had given them. Once outside, Zushi turned around smiling at all of them.

"I watched the three of your matches," he said. "You guys are amazing!"

"Look who's talking," Killua encouraged. "You're strong too."

"We're all in the same level!" Gon said.

Zushi, however, raised his hands on defense. "No. I've still a long way to go," he said. "By the way, which school of martial arts do you follow?"

The three looked at each other.

"Osu!" he said. "I practice Shingen-ryu Martial Arts!"

"Well, to be honest…" Hitomi scratched the back of her head. "No one."

"Huh?! You mean you got this good without anyone teaching you?!" he exclaimed, in huge surprise. "Osu! I am a little shocked. I have more to learn than I thought."

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched. _Osu again_ … she wondered how many times he had spluttered that word.

Her chain of thoughts got cut once they heard someone clapping behind them. They turned around to see a man with glasses. He was Zushi's master.

"You obviously remembered what I told you," he said, before looking at the other kids. "We haven't met, did we?"

"Oh, these are Hitomi-san, Gon-san and Killua-san," Zushi introduced them.

"It's a pleasure," he said. "My name is Wing."

"Osu!" Gon instantly said.

"O-Osu!" Killua said, a little insecure.

Hitomi raised an eyebrow at both of them. Wing, on the other hand, just smiled at them kindly.

"I didn't think there would be other kids competing here besides Zushi," he told them. "You must be quite accomplished if you've managed to get to this far. You should always remember to take care of yourself and your opponent's body."

He gave Zushi his prize and then told them that they could get it in the counter to cash their tickets.

"Osu!" Gon and Killua said at the same time.

And after that, the three of them started to walk away.

"This 'osu' thing is contagious," Killua commented.

"Yeah," Hitomi said, irritated. "And annoying too."

* * *

"The money hasn't changed either. That's what you get on the first floor, whether you win or lose," Killua commented, looking at the little money they had won. "After that, you get nothing if you lose. If you win, on the 50th floor you'll get around 50,000 jenny. After the 100th it's one million jenny and beyond the 150th it's over ten million."

They all looked at him, surprised at the huge amount of money they could earn.

"But you said you reached the 200th floor last time!" Hitomi exclaimed.

"You got that far?!" Zushi yelled.

Hitomi sweatdropped. They _all_ were looking at them at the moment.

"Well, to be honest, I actually quit after the 190th floor," he said and started to think. "I guess I won… 200 million."

"What did you do with all that money?" Gon asked, as shocked as the other two.

"That was almost four years ago! You didn't think I have anything left, did you?" he looked at them, like they were nuts. "I spent all of it on snacks."

Their faces fell, and couldn't say anything else.

"Hey you little kids!" a voice said behind them. "What are you doing like you're a bunch of big shots?"

Gon, as well as the guys, got surprised by seeing each other. They were the Amori Brothers, from the Hunter Exam.

Hitomi and Killua sighed, in annoyment.

"What are we gonna do now, bro?" the youngest asked.

"I was your idea to come over here and teach these conceited kids a lesson!"

"Conceited kids?" Killua said, as he and Hitomi turned around. "Are you talking about us?"

"So you are going to teach us a lesson?" Hitomi smirked. "It will be interesting…"

But they all ran away.

"… Maybe not, then," she completed her sentence, annoyed.

"Oh my, this place sure isn't what it used to be," Killua said. "Not if losers like that can get to this level. Getting off the 50th shouldn't be too tough."

Then a female voice sounded in the speakers. It said that the next match was between Killua and Zushi, what made the youngest pale at it.

"Well, we'll be off," Killua said, standing up.

"Best of luck to the both of you," Gon said.

"I'll wait for you two in the lobby on the 60th floor," he said, before walking away.

After the two boys were gone, both Gon and Hitomi sweatdropped.

"No sense of niceness," Hitomi murmured.

Gon nodded, smiling nervously.

"Attention, the next battle will be between the Amori Brothers in one team and Gon-sama, Hitomi-sama and Kei-sama. Please report to Ring C on the 58th floor."

Gon and Hitomi looked at each other and grinned. The Amori Brothers just paled.

* * *

"W-What?!" the participant, Kei, shouted in shock.

Gon smiled sheepishly at him and then to the Amori Brothers. They had all collided with the wall, thrown by both Gon and Hitomi. The other one, however, didn't even have the chance to fight. It was all over in a flash.

That's when they both felt something… unusual from the floor beneath them. Where Killua and Zushi were fighting.

They looked at each other and nodded.

When all was over, they started to run. Once they found an unscratched Killua, both kids sighed in relief.

"It seemed to take longer to finish than you thought," Gon commented.

"Yeah," Hitomi teased. "What happened? I thought you were invincible! Was Zushi that strong?"

"I had a little hard time, but Zushi is talented for sure and he'll be good someday. But to me his technique is full of holes," he replied. "But it was still pretty hard to take him down. Not only that… There was a moment when Zushi changed his stance. I got this bad feeling, just like when my brother confronted me."

Hitomi and Gon glanced at each other.

"We felt it," she said. "From the floor above yours. It felt a little… dangerous."

"I overheard his master say something about Ren," Killua told them.

The boy told them when he overheard Zushi and Wing's conversation and narrowed her eyes.

"I think we need to have a change of plans!" Killua declared. "I'm going for one thing… the top floor."

* * *

 _The blonde girl flicked her enemy once again, making him fly backwards, just like the first one she had encountered. The screen divided, showing another two kids who had just defeated their opponents as well._

 _"It took only three days for the newcomers Gon, Killua and Hitomi to reach the 150th floor! The three are undefeated after seven matches! What's even more remarkable is that, so far, none of their opponents have managed to score a single point against either of them! How long will this good luck last?"_

Annoyed, Killua turned off the television and sighed.

"It's not about luck, we're just better than them!" he murmured.

"Really? I do remember _someone_ telling us that the guys in the 100th floor were tough," Hitomi said, turning over a page of the book she was reading. "You made us all worry for nothing."

"But, you know, I'm a little vexed," he placed his arms behind his head. "The first time I was here it took me almost two months to get up to the 150th floor, yet…"

"You were six," she didn't take her gaze out of her book.

Killua looked at her, she wasn't paying him attention at all. He looked at Gon, who wasn't doing that either. He was like… panicking over the money he won.

But it got stolen by the other boy.

"Let me borrow it for a little while," he asked.

"How come?" he asked, in confusion. "Didn't you have the same amount deposited into your account?"

"Yeah, but I spent it!"

For the first time, Hitomi looked at him. She raised an eyebrow, before he pointed at a long line of boxes.

"I was wondering about those since I came in…" the girl murmured. "May I know what are they?"

"Chocolate Robots," he replied, in cat-mode. "It was on sale, so I thought I'd stock up."

They both sweatdropped.

"I think you've bought enough chocolate for now!" Gon shouted. "So give me my money ba-!"

He got cut when Killua put a pillow in his face. Annoyed, Hitomi sighed and moved out the way, sitting next to the boxes. She tried to read in peace, but it was fruitless.

"I said I'll give it back later!" Killua shouted.

"No way!"

Gon pushed the boy out of him, and he landed right in front of the boxes. Irritated, she hit the boxes with her hand, making all of them fall on Killua. Hitomi stole back Gon's money.

He glared her from beneath the chocolates.

"You're annoying," she just replied, it giving back to the other boy.

"Oh. Thanks, Hitomi," he said, before scolding his male friend. "You shouldn't waste your money, Killua."

"Don't call Chocolate Robots a waste of money!" he yelled.

Now Killua was pissed off. He jumped from where he was and ran to the boy. He stood behind him and grabbed both his hands and legs, resting his back on the bed.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch!" he shouted in pain. "I give up, I give up!"

He released the boy, making him stay there, with his face in the pillow. Killua stared at him for a while and sighed.

"How do you expect to make it to the 200th floor in the shape you're in?" he said, "Hisoka is even stronger than me, you know?"

"Yeah, I know that. But I'm not sure what kind of training I need," he murmured, before remembering something. He shot of the bed. "Killua... How good is Zushi?"

Hitomi's attention draw out the book, as she closed it. She looked at Killua, waiting for him to answer Gon's question.

"The guy is still trying to get of the 50-somethingth floor," he told them. "I told you before, but that is his level at the moment."

"But wasn't it hard to take him down?" Hitomi jumped in the conversation. He nodded.

"Yeah, during our match he kept getting back up no matter how many times I hit him, so I got a little ticked off," he recounted. "Finally, I hit him with some serious force and, even though I won for by a TKO, he stood up again. That was beyond the level of what one could manage with willpower."

"Maybe it has something to do with Ren, you know, that thing that Wing mentioned," Gon commented.

"That means he has some technique that Gon and I could sense from our floor," Hitomi said.

"I don't know, but as we move up to the higher floors, we'll probably face more people like that," Killua said, putting his hand under his chin in deep thought. "Maybe we'll find out if we fight them."

"Forget it, if that technique is really powerful we will be dead before we even lay a finger on them," she waved her hand at him. "Can't we just ask Zushi?"

"Oh, yeah!" he exclaimed, not having thought about that possibility.

They found Zushi not long after. He gladly accepted to explain that Ren thing to them, but that wasn't the problem...

"Ren is one of the four exercises, and the four exercises are fundamental to all martial arts to instill discipline and develop character. Learn Ten, know Zetsu and through Ren attain Hatsu! That's how you train for Nen!" he said, before bowing. "Now you know!"

They blinked at him and stared at the boy blankly, cluelessly.

"Nen?" Gon repeated.

"What the hell is Nen?" Hitomi murmured.

"That doesn't make any sense!" Killua snapped, making both Gon and Hitomi back away a little.

"It doesn't?" Zushi didn't even react to Killua outburst. "Then I'll try explaining it again, listen carefully. Ren is one of the four exercises, and the four exercises are-"

But then Wing appeared from nowhere and made him stop in mid sentence. Zushi bowed in greeting at his master.

"Gon-kun, Killua-kun, Hitomi-chan, there's an old cautionary proverb warning that a smattering of knowledge may leave you wallowing in greater ignorance," he told them.

"But little knowledge can be as dangerous as that," Hitomi replied. "I mean, if the enemy knows more than you, you're as good as dead. Isn't it like that?"

"I wanna know this Nen stuff right now," Killua added. "Even if you don't tell us, I'll find out without fail. But I don't want to get stuck wallowing around in ignorance. So if you agree to teach us, we won't be forced to go and learn what it is by myself."

"Please, Wing-san," Gon pleaded. "Killua, Hitomi and I came to train."

"Osu!" Gon and Killua bowed.

"O-Osu," Hitomi said, a little uncomfortable.

Wing sighed, giving up.

"I understand. Please, follow me."

* * *

The three children walked off Wing's place. Gon waved at him happily, before catching up his two friends with a grin in his face.

"Wing-san is really amazing," he told them. "Zushi is lucky to have such a master."

"But what he told us earlier, that was a lie," Killua said, Hitomi nodded.

"A lie?"

"What he said sounded right and the demonstration of his power was very real, but..."

"Have you seen Zushi's face at that moment?" Hitomi completed. "The guy is on it, and he knew that Wing was telling us a lie."

Gon thought about it for a moment.

"But, why would he tell us such a lie?" Gon murmured.

"This Nen stuff is something dangerous. "I think that Wing is afraid of what we could do with it, " Hitomi sighed, before murmuring sarcastically, "He trust us way _a lot_..."

"But, before we leave Heavens Arena, we're gonna have to figure out what Nen really is!" Killua declared.

* * *

"It does bug me a little after all," Killua murmured, waiting in front of the elevator to get to the 200th floor. "It took me two years to get to the 200th floor. On the other hand, you two..."

"Killua, you were _six_ ," Hitomi reminded him, annoyed.

"I know, but still..."

The elevator opened, revealing the same girl who had been annoyed by them before, making her back away slightly.

Once inside it, they stood in silence.

"I wonder what the 200th floor is like!" Gon exclaimed.

"I don't know," Killua admitted. "When I got this far last time I didn't bother to register. I just left and went back home."

"Oh well," Hitomi sighed, before directing to the elevator girl. "Miss, do you know-?"

"I don't know," she cut her, dryly.

"So you don't know? How useless," Killua said.

Realizing what was happening, Hitomi took a couple of steps closer to the door. Meanwhile, Gon tried to shut Killua up.

"This place is really going downhill. They don't even bother training their employees anymore!" he continued.

"Killua!" Gon tried to stop him.

"If they can't, they could have at least made a better choice on the looks..."

"Killua!"

Hitomi's eyes flew open. "Uh-oh," she murmured.

Killua shut up, looking at Hitomi cluelessly. He then realized what she meant when he noticed the elevator girl turning around, angered.

Hitomi looked away, nonchalantly, as she hit them. Once the elevator stopped, she got out it as quickly as she could.

She turned around to see both of her friends and started to laugh hard. She put a hand over her hurting stomach. Their faces were a complete mess.

"It isn't funny!" Killua shouted, annoyed.

"It is!" she replied.

After calming down, the three friends made their way in the corridor. However, after a while, they felt something... strange.

"Can you two feel it?" Killua asked.

"Yeah, this feeling is..." Gon trailed.

"This has to be that Nen thing," Hitomi concluded. "It was worth coming to the 200th floor after all."

They nodded at each other, and started to walk once again. After they took two steps or so, a huge wave of wind made them move back.

"Hey! We know you're there, why don't you come out and face us?!" Killua yelled.

From the corner, a worker from the Heavens Arena appeared. She looked at them, with a emotionless expression in her face, and pointed at some direction.

"You must be Gon-sama, Hitomi-sama and Killua-sama," she said. "The reception desk is right over there. You have until the end of the day to register for your matches. Please be aware that once it's past midnight, you'll no longer be allowed to register."

A person stepped closer and stood at her side. The three kids looked at him and gaped in huge surprise.

"The clown... great," Hitomi rolled her eyes.

"Hisoka!" Gon exclaimed.

"What are you doing here?!" Killua asked.

"What am I doing here? Such an expected reaction," Hisoka replied, holding a card. "Here is my answer... I came here because the cards told me to. They told me that our fates were intertwined."

Their faces fell in disbelief and disgust, at the same time.

"Just kidding. Of course it wasn't fate, I planned the whole thing," he told them. "You used the internet to purchase your airship tickets, didn't you? It's easy to search that thing and find out who is going to be when and where. After that, I boarded my private airship, arrived here and waited for you."

"So you're stalking us!" Killua and Hitomi shouted in unison.

"Don't be silly," he smirked. "I'm a regular tenant here on the 200th floor and have been for a long time now. So, as someone who knows his way around here, let me give you a little piece of advice. It's too early for you to step on this floor... turn back!"

The pressure got stronger, at the point that the kids weren't able to stand on their feet anymore. After that, Hisoka sat in the floor, saying that he would wait for when they were ready.

"Come back another time," he said. "It's just too soon for you now."

"No way, we've come this far and we're not leaving!" Killua shouted.

They tried to even stood in their feet, but it was fruitless. That's when Wing arrived at the place.

"Stop trying to force yourselves. You're totally unguarded against his Nen," he told them. "It's like you've wandered into the snowstorm naked and don't understand why it's so cold. You might die if you kept forcing your body and spirit."

"See that?!" Hitomi yelled, pointing at Hisoka, "That's more that a thought, you lying bastard!"

"I've decided to teach you true Nen," Wing replied, he looked at Hisoka. "So, let us retreat from here now."

Hisoka stopped and smirked. Meanwhile, Gon asked the worker what happened if they didn't register by midnight. She told them that Hitomi and Gon would have to start all over again, but Killua would be banned because the last time he didn't bother to register.

"If we leave here with you now, can we come back here within the midnight?" Killua asked Wing.

"That will depend on you," he told them.

* * *

Several roses that Wing threw stabbed the vase, using his Nen.

"What was that bull about burning your spirit?" Killua said, irritated. "What kind of master are you, anyway, lying to innocent kids?"

 _"Innocent?"_ Hitomi raised an eyebrow. _"Well, Gon at least..."_

"Killua-kun, you seem to be quite passionate about learning Nen," Wing commented. "Any particular reason?"

"Because it explains the secret of my brother's power," he said.

"Your brother uses Nen?" Wing asked in surprise.

"Yeah, I'm sure he does," he nodded.

The man looked at them for a moment, with a serious expression.

"Okay, I'll teach you assuming you understand the dark side to Nen as well," he said. "Nen is the ability to control at will the life energy which flows through your body. Ten is a technique that will help you retain that energy within your body. Zetsu is a technique for shutting off your aura. And Ren is for generating your aure beyond ordinary amount."

And Wing continued explaining about that Nen stuff, and Hitomi found it really interesting. It was a miracle that she pay attention in all his speech without even spacing out.

"Do you understand?" he said, finishing his explanation.

"Yeah, I understand three things," Killua said. "One, how powerful true Nen is. Two, we won't be able to win without it from here on out. And three, you are a tricky bastard!"

"My thoughts exactly..." Hitomi murmured.

Wing just smiled, nervously, before continuing.

"There are only two ways to awaken it: slowly... or by force," he told them.

"And by the looks, we'll be forced to awaken it by force," Hitomi muttered, bored. He just looked at her, before resuming his explanation.

"Zushi took the slow path, he is a quick learner who is very dedicated to his training so he was able to master Ten in a relatively short period of time. It took him six months," he said. "But we don't have enough time. So, as Hitomi-chan said, we'll have to awaken it by force."

"And then we can make it on time?" Killua asked.

"That depends on whether you can master Ten or not," he said. "I'm going to attempt to transmit my aura into you. This is known as Hatsu, similar to what I used earlier."

"Great," Hitomi rolled her eyes. "So that means we'll get killed by our so-loved teacher instead of the clown?"

"I'm going to hold back, of course, but that doesn't mean it's not going to be rough," he chucked at her. "By sending my aure through your bodies, I'll force open your nodes. Now, please remove your jackets and turn your backs toward me."

Hitomi nodded and took her hoodie off. She felt a warmth in her back, even though she knew that Wing wasn't even touching her. Wing first opened Killua and Gon's nodes and instantly after Hitomi's.

She felt like something hit her in the back, nearly making her lose her balance. Hitomi then felt something... strange. It was like something warm inside her was escaping for her.

She stared in amazement at the aura around her. She had never felt anything like it.

"At this rate, your life's energy will soon be depleted," Wing said, "and when it's gone, you'll be too exhausted to even stand."

"How can you say something like this that calmly!" the girl shouted, panicking a little.

"Listen to me!" he said. "Just imagine you're containing your aura. Now close your eyes. Stand however is easiest for you. Feel the aura as the very blood coursing through your veins and now try slowing it down!"

They did as they were told and, much in Wing surprise, the three of them mastered the aura in a matter of a few seconds.

"Now slowly open your eyes," he instructed. "Tell me how you feel."

"I feel like I'm soaked in lukewarm viscous fluid," Gon answered.

"Like I'm being surrounded by a wave of stream," Hitomi murmured.

"It's like I'm wearing clothes that don't weigh anything," Killua said.

"Try to hold on those first impressions. Once you internalize them, you'll be able to use Ten in your sleep," Wing said, after activating his own Nen. "This time, I'm going to attack you with a malicious aura. If you can withstand this, you'll be ready to past Hisoka. Here it comes."

They all nodded, ready for that.

* * *

Hisoka smirked, when he looked at the three kids in front of him, who had passed through his wall of Nen.

"Welcome to the 200th floor. Looks like you won't need to be initiated," Hisoka said, before looking directly to Gon. "I can guess why you decided to come here. You're here to train yourself to fight me, aren't you?"

"I didn't know you were gonna show up here," Gon admitted. "Guess that saves me time."

"Don't get too cocky just because you've learned Ten. Nen has many facets," he said, before standing up. "Quite frankly, I don't plan on fighting you anytime soon. But if you can win one match on this floor I'll reconsider it."

And he walked away. The three friends made it on time and succeed in registering. The woman who worked in the reception tried to tell them all the new things in the 200th floor, but none of them were interesting at all.

"Well, we just came for training, didn't we?" Hitomi said.

But then, they felt someone behind them. As the other two did, Hitomi looked over her shoulder, just to see three men.

 _"These weirdos want to fight us… they look boring,"_ she thought. _"Wait, what if I make them wait, until their deadline? I don't know when it is, but…"_

"I'm ready for a march anytime," Gon told her.

"In the first days of April," Hitomi said and looked over her shoulder, smirking.

They glared at her, she had been right. Their deadline was before then.

Killua shook his head. Even though Wing told them to not fight until two months, they both were going to do so before then.

They walked to Gon's room and found out a sign on it.

 _"Match date confirmed; March 11th at 3:00 PM at the 225th Floor Arena."_

"That's tomorrow!" Killua exclaimed.

"I probably won't win this one, but that's okay," he said, his Nen increasing. "I wanna find out what I'm capable of with this power."

"It's not okay," Hitomi facepalmed. "Now I'm _really_ worried."

* * *

End of the chapter... Maybe it was a little too long? Well, sorry...

Anyway, I'd like to thank **SlightlyYandereMelissa** , **Mr. Kohen** , **JokeLover123** and **fantasy.92** for leaving a review! I'm really happy that you liked the 13th chapter and I hope you enjoyed this as well :)

Thanks for the other people reading in silence :) I wish you had fun!

See you all later!


	15. A Celebrity x Surprise Kiss x Phone Talk

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 15: Fighting A Celebrity! x Surprise Kiss x Phone Talk**

"Broken right radius and ulna, a cracked humerus, three rib fractures and cracks in a dozen other bones… Four months of healing," Hitomi scolded, slightly annoyed, "What the hell do you have in your head?"

"Sorry," Gon murmured.

"Apologizing to us isn't gonna to do anything!" Killua said, poking his forehead. "What's going on in here, huh?"

Killua stopped doing that and Gon rubbed his forehead in pain. Hitomi sighed, sitting up in the bed, at the other side of Killua and Gon.

"You could've been one of those guys who got initiated without knowing Nen," she scolded. "One wrong move and you could've ended up just like these creeps!"

"I know, but I really thought I was gonna be alright," he grinned. Their eyebrows twitched. "I know I got hit by those tops a bunch of times but I had the feeling I wasn't gonna die."

He winced in pain, when both of his friends started to step in his broken arm, irritated at his attitude.

"Your feeling is just wrong," Hitomi smiled wickedly. "You are going to die, _right now._ "

Gon got saved, when someone knocked the door. Killua opened it, just to reveal a pissed off Wing.

Killua and Hitomi gaped in surprise when he slapped his student across his face, when he tried to apologize.

"What good is an apology gonna do now?! What the hell were you thinking out there?!" he scolded him. "You could've been one of those guys who got initiated without knowing Nen! One wrong move and you-!"

"Oh, yeah," Killua cut him off, pointing at Hitomi with his thumb. "She had just told him that."

He looked at them, before directing his gaze back to Gon. He sighed, before putting a hand in his shoulder. He smiled slightly.

"I'm just glad it wasn't any worse. I really mean that."

"Wing-san…" Gon murmured. "I'm really sorry."

"Forget, that's not good enough," Wing replied, irritated, scaring the boy a little. He turned around to the other two. "Do you two know how long it'll take Gon to make a full recovery?"

"The doctor said it'll take about two months," Killua lied.

Hitomi blinked… that wasn't the reply she was expecting. There was no way Wing could believe such a li-!

"I see," Wing answered. "I forbid you to participate in any matches for two months.

She blinked once again… he fell for it way _too_ easily. She looked back to Killua, who smirked at her, cat ears popping out his head once again.

 _"And I thought that Gon was the most simple-minded person in the world…"_

After giving Gon a thread, as a reminder of his promise, Wing got out the room.

"By the way, Hitomi," Killua asked her out of cold. "When is your next match?"

"That's right, 3th April," she answered, remembering it. "I'm fighting with that Kastro-guy."

* * *

Killua and Hitomi stared at disbelief at Gon when they arrived to his room. He was grinning, doing a headstand with just one hand.

"Hey, guys! I was just gonna come and see you!" he grinned. "Today is your fight, isn't it, Hitomi?"

"Who cares?" Hitomi murmured, looking at the boy in awe. "Y-You are all better now?"

"Yep!" he smiled, moving around energetically. "All better! I'm completely healed!"

Both of them just stared blankly at him.

"He got over a four month injury-" Killua trailed off.

"-in less than a month," Hitomi completed. "Now I'm getting scared."

Killua, irritated, walked closer to him and poked his forehead as he did at the other time, making Gon stumble and rest his back with the wall.

"What are you made of?!" he shouted.

"Oh, maybe it's because I've been eating these!" Gon grinned, showing them a bag with dried sardines.

"Too simple…" Killua and Hitomi sighed.

* * *

Gon stood in front of the elevator next to his friends, feeling a little uneasy.

"It's okay, Gon!" Killua shouted at him. "All we're going to do is sit and watch Hitomi's match-!"

"Forget it," Wing stopped Killua in mid sentence, as he stood off the elevator. "Watching a match counts as studying Nen. Killua-kun may go, but Gon-kun I want you to focus on getting better for another month," Gon nodded. "Well, that's all I have to say. Good luck, Hitomi-chan."

After that, Wing walked off.

"I'll be dead before I step on the arena if you keep giving me heart attacks, damn stalker!" Hitomi shouted, pissed off, before jumping in the elevator.

"Is anyone going up?" the elevator girl asked.

But she got ignored.

"Oh well, I'll have to go alone," Killua complained. "These tickets cost me 150,000 jenny each… Who could have said that one of Hitomi's match would be this expensive!"

"Anyone going up?" the girl repeated again, a little pissed off.

"I could've bought a thousand chocolate robots with that!"

"Is _anyone_ going up?!"

"Man, damn it!"

"JUST GET IN ALREADY, KID!"

The elevator woman walked off her place and grabbed Killua, smashing his head with the wall of the elevator.

"Okay, I'll see you later," Killua murmured, with his face still in the wall. Hitomi waved, smiling nervously.

"Umm… Good luck, Hitomi," Gon said, feeling a little lacked of words.

Since Hitomi wasn't in a hurry, she accompanied Killua to the food stock. He wanted to buy some chocolate, but there wasn't any.

"What?! There's no more Chocolate Robots?!" he shouted.

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that, sir," the worked apologized. "Two days ago, someone came here and bought up our entire stock."

Killua's face fell and Hitomi just laughed.

"An idiot, don't you think, Killua?" she teased. "It must be some little kid with a terrible addiction to chocolate. He must be way _too_ fat!"

He glared at her.

"We should be getting more in about two weeks," the woman said.

"In that case, I'll have some energy juice," he smiled nervously.

They walked away, Hitomi still chuckling and teasing Killua. She stopped doing so when she saw Kastro in the television.

 _"Well, I'm not letting the pressure of winning my ninth match to get me," he said. "Also, my opponent is a little girl, so I think I have to be easy with her."_

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched in annoyment.

"And here I thought he'd be a gorilla," Killua commented.

"He has a pretty face…" she said, irritated. "One I really want to punch right now."

 _"After this match is over, do you think you have a chance defeating Hisoka?" the reporter asked._

 _"If I didn't think I could win, I wouldn't fight. I'll prove that I'm not the same opponent Hisoka faced two years ago."_

A vein popped up in Hitomi's forehead.

"A big talker, huh?" Killua commented.

"Don't forget me I'm still here!" she shouted, even though she knew he couldn't hear her. She sighed. "Anyway, I'm off."

* * *

Hitomi looked herself in the mirror and sighed. She was getting really bored, but didn't really want to fight that guy. Just looking at his face made her want to puke.

"So you are really fighting him, huh~?" someone said behind her.

She quickly turned around and nearly had a heart attack. Seating beside her, was one person. The least - after Kastro - she wanted to see.

"The psycho clown…" she murmured. "What are you doing here?"

"That hurts! I really just meant to visit you!" he replied, dramatically.

"It's about Kastro, isn't it?" she said, still keeping her distance. "He is eager to fight you."

He smirked, looking to a card.

"And, as long as I knew, he could have arranged a battle before, without needing to fight me…" she murmured a little annoyed. "You had something to do with this, don't you?"

"Oh, my, you're so clever," he praised her, making a chill run through her back. "I just told him to win nine battles in a row, and if he does get you, he will fight me~"

Hisoka stood up and gave her a last smile.

"Good luck, unripe fruit~"

Right when he got to the door, he bumped with Killua, who was getting on the room. The boy froze, and Hisoka waved a hand to him before leaving.

"Why the hell-?!" he was going to say.

"Don't ask," she cut him off. "I'm still a little creeped out because of it."

Killua gave her a long look and slowly nodded, still stunned.

"I'm touched," Hitomi said. "First Creepy Clown is visiting me and now is Kitty-boy… What brings you here, by the way?"

He didn't have a comeback comment, that startled Hitomi a little bit. He gazed at his feet, like he didn't know how to put that in words.

"Please, give up this match," he pleaded.

She jumped in her seat, a little surprised. She had never dreamed of the day that _Killua_ could be saying something like this.

Killua told her all about his talk with Kastro and his strange ability. Hitomi told him about her talk with Hisoka.

"He will be whatever it takes to defeat Hisoka," he said. "But before that, he has to beat you. Even-"

"-even if he has to kill me?" she completed. He nodded. "Don't worry. I'll win."

"That's not the problem, idiot!" he shouted. "Will you be as reckless as Gon?!"

"Maybe," Hitomi admitted. "But that's _my_ problem, not yours."

"Can you at least listen to me?!" Killua snapped, annoyed.

"I can, but I think I won't," she grinned, before looking at the clock. "Well, I think it's time for me to go. See ya!"

Hitomi felt a hold in her arm, not letting her go. She glared at Killua and struggled, but he didn't let her free.

"Can you release my arm, Killua?" she said, sternly.

"I can, but I think I won't," he replied the same thing she had said, smirking. Hitomi's eyebrow twitched.

"Come on!" she shouted. "I'm gonna be late."

"So will be then," he murmured.

She glared at Killua once again. It was crystal clear that he wanted to make her fail so bad.

"Please," she murmured. "Killua."

"Will you even listen to me?!" Killua snapped. "I had enough with Gon and I don't want to-!"

Without warning, Hitomi got closer to Killua's face. The boy felt his friend's lips pressing slightly against his cheek and he blushed a little bit.

His grip on her slacked down, and she took advantage of that. Hitomi broke free from his grasp and started to run away.

"Thank you for letting me go!" she exclaimed.

"Huh?! Wha-! You-!" Killua reacted. "You are gonna pay for this!"

She grinned, a little red as well. It was a little disgusting, maybe, but that was the only way available

* * *

"This is it, the moment you've all been waiting for! Kastro versus Hitomi, one of the young newcomers they all have been talking about!" the voice sounded through the speakers. "Who is going to emerge victorious in this brutal grudge match? Will it be Kastro? Or will it be Hitomi? It's anybody's guess!"

Much in everyone's surprise, they were half and half. She was surprised, but slid into a fighting stance.

"Your appearance is a little deceiving, isn't it?" Kastro chuckled. "Let's hope this is interesting."

"So do I," Hitomi smirked.

Kastro ran to her, and she managed to avoid him. However, something hit her neck from behind, making her fall in the floor. Hitomi quickly stood up and glared at him.

 _"That must be the technique that worried Killua that much…"_ she smirked. _"He isn't just a pretty face after all."_

"I won't be easy on you next time," he declared.

Again, he launched at her. Feeling that something was going to attack her from behind, she jumped avoiding the attacks from both fronts. Hitomi stepped back, with extreme caution.

She wanted to raise her arm to hit him, but she felt a sharp pain running through it, and it didn't move. Hitomi glanced at it, just to see her own arm all soaked in her own blood.

 _"When did he-?"_ she thought in disbelief.

She looked at the Kastro once again. He was concentrating Nen in his hands.

"There we have it!" the woman of the speakers exclaimed. "Kastro's signature Tiger Bite Fist!"

Killua, on the other hand, only frowned at the sight of his friend's bleeding wound. She got up again, despite the seriousness of her injuries.

 _"This is bad... At this rate..."_ Killua bit his lip.

Hitomi sighed and looked at the man. There was no way he would be able to hit her that easily in her back, when she was looking at him at the same time. Too much for one person…

Her eyes flew open.

 _"Got it!"_ she thought. _"Now… there has to be some weak point on his technique…"_

"You can't possibly move your arm," Kastro told her. "I've even cut your muscle fibers."

Hitomi growled a little bit, before he ran to her once again. She tried to dodge his attack, but her neck got hit from behind, spilling blood. She lost her balance, so she used her good arm to support her weight and raising her feet to avoid the attack.

However, she winced in pain once he took her legs. Kastro used his grip on her to throw her out the arena, but Hitomi managed to continue on the battle.

Meanwhile, Killua couldn't help but feel a little worried. He clenched his fists once he saw the girl fell into the ground again, before standing again, her body soaked in blood.

And, despite the pain she was feeling, her violet eyes didn't lose that fierce gaze. They didn't either become red or anything.

She was calm.

Unable to take it anymore, the boy stood up from his seat and ran towards the first seats. He glared at the people who told him to return to his original place.

"Enough, Hitomi!" he yelled. "Give up!"

Hitomi looked at him and smirked.

"No way."

"You big idiot!" he shouted. "If you continue fighting like this you're as good as dead!"

"Shut up!" she yelled. "You're distracting me!"

Hitomi's eyes opened a little bit, before analyzing her own words once again. Distracting... distract... lose oneself concentration...

 _"That's it!"_ she yelled in her head, proud at her discovering.

This time, she was the one to run to him. She used Zetsu and started to avoid all of his attacks without a flaw. She then noticed another Kastro approach her.

"I've discovered you technique…" Hitomi said, before turning around and face his clone. "And its weakness!"

The clone paled and disappeared not long after that. She avoided the real Kastro and, since all her other muscles ached like hell, she used the only place he hadn't touched: her hand.

She flicked him, throwing him out the ring, smashing the wall.

"The winner is Hitomi!"

Killua sighed in relief, letting himself fall in his butt on the floor. He smiled, at the sight of his friend very much alive.

"Hey, boy, you should be happier!" a man shouted at him. "Your girlfriend won!"

The boy's cold glare froze the man. He sighed again, before making his way to Hitomi, who was walking down the corridor despite her injuries.

"Where do you think you're going?" Killua asked her.

"To my room," she replied, nonchalantly, "It's disgusting to be all soaked in blood, so I'll take a bath."

He raised an eyebrow, putting his hands on his pockets. "You should go to the infirmary," he suggested.

"Why?" she replied. "I feel good."

"Really?" he narrowed his eyes.

"Uh-huh," she nodded.

A sharp pain run through her arm and couldn't help but wince. He glared at her friend, who had touched her with his index finger.

"Oh, yeah!" Killua replied, sarcastically. "You're _really_ fine."

"Get lost," she said under her breath, a little annoyed.

Hitomi tried to walk faster and after a little bit she noticed that her sight was getting dizzier and dizzier as time passed by. She was losing her balance, so she put a hand on the wall for support.

"Are you okay?" she heard Killua ask, or so she thought. His voice was getting muffled and Hitomi had to focus an awfully lot to understand his words.

"I told you I'm fine," she murmured, weakly.

She started to walk away, and Killua watched his friend's steps sway a little before falling in the floor with a thud.

"Hitomi!"

* * *

"Gastrocnemius, quadriceps and right biceps totally torn apart. Long cuts in sternocleidomastoid, tibialis anterior and triceps. Blood loss of a thirty-five percent... Two months of healing," Killua scolded, slightly annoyed, giving her his back. "Are you even listening to me?"

"Not really," Hitomi replied, turning around a page of the book she was reading.

Gon stared at her for a couple of minutes, before starting to poke her cheek, much in her dismay. She didn't take her gaze out of the book though.

"I do remember _someone_ lecturing me for doing something like this," Gon teased.

"You do?" she replied, nonchalantly.

Killua's eyebrow twitched, before turning around.

"Don't play dumb!" he said, annoyed.

"Why? It's fun to annoy you, guys."

Irritated, Killua grabbed Hitomi's cheeks and started to pull them into weird grimaces. Gon laughed nervously at the sight.

"How is that?" Killua smirked evilly, still doing that.

"You, idiot, stop it!" she shouted. "It hurts!"

"Why? It's fun to annoy you, Dummy!"

The door opened and Zushi stepped on the room. He ran up to Hitomi, a little worried about her.

"Hitomi-san!" he exclaimed, rushing over the injured girl.

"You don't have to worry, Zushi," Killua replied, letting Hitomi free. "The only thing that can kill her now is being unable to fight for a whole month."

"Just a month?" Zushi repeated in surprise. "With her injuries, wouldn't she have to be healing another month?"

"I don't know, Zushi," Killua replied. "The doctor said that."

Hitomi smiled, in thanks, while Gon just blinked a few times. Like Killua did the last time, he smirked at them with his cat-face.

But Hitomi's smile disappeared when another person entered in the room. Wing stood in front of her, with a pissed off expression.

Killua had lied to Zushi in that too. She was going to die, _right now._

* * *

A day passed by and Hitomi was feeling really bored. Her injuries didn't hurt much, but Wing made her promise that she wouldn't fight or use Nen for the whole month. He even had given her the thread he gave Gon. She now knew how Gon felt...

She then realized something she didn't thought before and took off her earphones.

 _"Today is 4th April..."_ she remembered. _"Oh, well. Giving him a call won't hurt anyone, will it?"_

Hitomi took her cell phone and dialed the number. She let herself fall in her bed, still hearing a couple of rings. After awhile, they stopped.

"I thought you would be dead already, Hitomi," he teased once he picked up.

"That's mean!" she joked, as she was feeling hurt at his words, "I even bother to call my dear brother and I receive this type of treatment?"

Kurapika laughed in the other side of the phone. "So, why are calling?" he asked. "Did something happen?"

" _'Why'_ , you ask? Why do you think? It's 4th April!" she shouted. "Your birthday, dumbass!"

There was a long pause, Kurapika stayed quiet for a whole minute. Hitomi released a long sigh.

"You've forgotten what day it is, haven't you?" she said.

"Well..." he trailed off. "Something like that."

"That's not a good sign, you're about to do something reckless," she told him, a little annoyed, before rolling to lean in her belly. "By the way, I'm sorry. I couldn't bought a present or something."

"It doesn't matter, I'm just glad to hear from you," he replied with a gently voice. "Anyway, how are you guys doing? You're with Gon and Killua, I can suppose."

"Yeah," she nodded, despite of she knew that he couldn't see it. "We're in Heavens Arena at the moment, 200th floor."

"Really?" he asked, surprised. "Did you won any interesting battle?"

"Actually... yes," she replied a little unsure.

Kurapika kept silent for a little more. "What are you doing?" he asked, with a serious voice.

"Talking with you?" Hitomi suggested.

" _Hitomi..._ " he murmured under his breath.

"Fine, fine. I'm in my room," she sighed. "... _Healing,_ okay?"

"Why?"

Then Hitomi had no more option to tell him about all what happened in the last two months, leaving out the Nen stuff, of course. She didn't want Wing to kill her after all.

"What the hell were you thinking out there?!" he shouted, making his sister quit her ear off the phone to not get her hearing damaged. "You could be dead now!"

"Calm down, Blondie, you're going to get me deaf," she murmured. "I could be dead, yes, but I'm alive now. Thank you very much."

The boy scowled at the other side, maybe a little irritated for her. She had to change the topic now, so she said whatever she had in her mind.

"Say, what are _you_ doing?" she asked.

"I'm still looking for a job," he replied, she blinked. "I went to find one, but the manager told me that I'm not a Hunter yet."

"What?" she said, confused. "But you showed her the Hunter License, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but she still didn't accept me as a Hunter," his voice was serious. "Also, at that time, she asked me if I could see something behind her. After I told her I couldn't, she told me to come back when I knew what she was talking about."

Hitomi eyes opened, having a feeling about that she meant at that moment. She stayed without saying anything.

"Hitomi?" Kurapika asked, not hearing her voice anymore.

"Glasses-san is gonna kill me..." she murmured under her breath.

"What?"

Hitomi sighed, before getting in a sitting position. She looked at the window and noticed that her teacher wasn't going to abruptly come in.

"Well, brother, listen. Take this advice as your birthday gift," she said, seriously. "You need to search for a teacher and ask them to teach you something called _Nen._ "

"Nen?" he asked, confused. "What's that?"

"I'm sorry, that's all I can tell you. My teacher is gonna kill me if he knows I'm telling you this," she said in a rush. "Take care and bye."

"Sure... you too. Bye," he muttered.

She quickly cut the line and sighed, letting herself fall in her bed again. A smirk appeared in her features, knowing that Kurapika could learn Nen as quick as they have.

 _"Well... Wing isn't here, is he?"_

Hitomi sit still, using Ren. After a bit, she stopped and smiled satisfied. But when she saw her finger - her broken thread more likely - she paled.

 _"Now Wing is really going to kill me!"_ she yelled in her head.

On other side of the world, Kurapika looked at his phone, frowning. That Nen thing his sister had mentioned... Was it really what the woman was talking about?

" _She is into it..."_ he thought. _"Now I'm more curious about this Nen."_

* * *

A month passed pretty fast, and Hitomi was grateful at this. Also, despite being scolded for a long time for breaking her promise, Wing didn't stop training her. Indeed, the three of them started training with Zushi and learned Gyo after only a day, much in their teacher surprise.

And like that, their training for Hatsu started.

"Emitter, Enhancer, Transmuter, Manipulator, Conjurer and Specialist," Wing said. "Nen users are classified into six broad categories. Nen abilities have a deep connection with the user's personality. Depending on born characteristics of one's aura it will fall into one of these categories."

Then, he showed them a chart with the Nen kanji in the middle and the six types of Nen around it.

"This chart illustrates the compatibility of each of the six characteristics," he explained. "The closer two categories are to each other, the easier it is to learn and master both, but the further away two are, the harder it ts. Therefore, it's important to understand which characteristic your aura belongs to from the start."

"Is there a way to find that out?" Killua asked.

"There is," he replied, pointing to a glass of water with a floating leaf he had somewhere. "Water Divination is a Shingen Ryu screening tool and it also happens to be used in training Hatsu. Cup your hands around the glass and perform Ren."

Wing's yellow aura surrounded his hands and the water started to increase, overflowing the glass in where it was.

"Enhancers change the volume of the water, so this shows that I have an Enhancer's aura," he explained. "Now why don't you four give it a try?"

Gon went first and they could see his orange-colored aura cover his hands. Just like Wing, the water began to overflow.

"Guess you're an Enhancer too!" Killua commented.

Hitomi decided to give it a try and focused her red Nen in her hands. Not long after, the leaf started to move slightly.

"It's moving... so?" she raised an eyebrow.

"That means you're a Manipulator," Wing smiled.

Next one was Zushi, whose green aura was already in his hands. Just like Hitomi, the leaf started to move.

"I'm a Manipulator too!" he exclaimed. Both Hitomi and Zushi grinned at each other.

Finally, violet Nen surrounded Killua's hands as he put them closer to the cup. He stayed there for a while, but nothing happened.

"N-Nothing is happening," Killua said, confused. "Could it be I have no ability?"

"No, no," Wing assured. "Why don't you taste the water?"

The three of them put a finger in the water, before tasting it, meanwhile Zushi just stared.

"It's kinda sweet," Killua commented.

"You're right," Gon nodded.

"Then, what do you have? Sugar Nen?" Hitomi said sarcastically. "I think that proves your sugar addiction."

Killua glared at her and Wing chuckled.

"Changing the taste of the water shows you're a Transmuter," he said. "Well, now everyone knows exactly what type of aura they have. For the next four weeks, devote yourself to this training. Keep polishing it up until you can make more significant changes."

And her Manipulator training started like that.

* * *

Hisoka challenged Gon to a match and he accepted, that was the reason Killua and Hitomi were in the stadium, watching Gon lame tries to hit him.

But everything changed once Gon changed his strategy. Instead of hitting him for real he _pretended_ to attack him and stopped a few inches from his face.

He then jumped at his side and lifted one of the stones tile. He then punched at it, making it break. Since Hisoka had to avoid the stones, Gon found his chance to hit him across the face.

"So, he finally did it," Hitomi commented, smiling. Killua nodded with a smile of his own.

After that, Hisoka moved for the first time in all the match. They both walked to the center of the arena and Gon gave the badge of the Hunter Exam, and Hisoka accepted it.

That was where the real battle started.

"How much have you learn about Nen?" Hisoka asked.

"All the basis," Gon replied.

"Really?" he analyzed him. "You're an Enhancer, aren't you?"

"Huh?!" he exclaimed in surprise. "How did you know that?!"

"It won't do to expose yourself so easily," Hisoka chuckled. "You're so cute."

"S-Shut up!" Gon blushed slightly. "How did you know?"

Hitomi unconsciously leaned forward, interested.

"Like using blood types to tell a person's personality, is baseless, but I've devised a method of profiling people by their aura. For example your friends, Killua is a Transmuter and Hitomi a Manipulator, aren't they?" he asked. The three people twitched. "So I thought."

"Just tell me how do you know!"

"In short, the characteristic of an Enhancer is..." he pointed at him. "Simple-mindedness."

He was absolutely right. Gon's face fell.

 _"That's true,"_ Killua and Hitomi thought in union.

 _"So true,"_ Zushi thought, looking at his master.

Hisoka pointed at himself. "By the way, I'm a Transmuter too. We're whimsical liars."

 _"That's true,"_ Gon thought, looking at Hisoka.

"Completely true," Hitomi said, looking at Killua.

He just glared at her, blushing a little bit.

"And to complete the group," he said, before pointing at the group in the public. "Manipulators, argumentative but reckless in their own goals."

Hitomi stood up. "I'm not reck-!" she was about to say.

"He is absolutely right," Killua looked at her with a smirk. Hitomi glared and stuck her tongue at him.

 _"Argumentative?"_ Wing looked at Zushi, a little puzzled.

Long story short, Hisoka got serious. Even though Gon got the opportunity to attack the magician several times, he wasn't strong enough. Gon ended up being tricked by Hisoka's Bungee Gum and lost the battle by TKO.

"Idiot," Hitomi facepalmed.

* * *

I'm so sorry for the late update! To be honest, I tried to do so yesterday. I don't really know if I was the only one, but I just couldn't login. Well, that was then and this is now. So, here is it :)

Also, sorry for the lame fight. I think I broke the canon a little too... I really apologize :(

Thanks to...

 **SlightlyYandereMelissa** **:** We all love Killua, even if he is like that :D Anyway, thanks for reviewing and let's hope you liked this chapter.

 **SoulXHunter:** There you have Hitomi's Hatsu, I hope I didn't dissapointed you... Thank you a lot for reviewing and I wish you enjoyed the chapter as well :)

 **JokeLover123** **:** I'm sorry if the last chapter left you a little confused... I just wanted to say that Hitomi wanted to fight, but not against them. That's why she registered a month before that, hoping that their deadline was before then. She was just lucky and it was like that. Either way, thanks for reviewing and I hope you enjoyed this chapter despite of this.

 **Silent Readers:** For keep reading the story! Let's wish you liked it as well.

That's all! See you all later :)


	16. Last Battles x Chocolate x Bye-bye!

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 16: Last Battles x Chocolate x Bye, Heavens Arena!**

Killua disappeared from Dorado's sight and tried to attack by his back, but he avoided his attack with his spear and hit the boy instead. Killua backed away, avoiding more blows.

His shirt got ripped, as he tried to dodge the attack. He looked at him, sitting on the floor. Dorado infused Nen in his spear and attacked once again, Killua jumped and successfully avoided it.

Then a huge wave of wind hit him, making him step back a little bit. Dorado took a swing to attack him and Killua glared at him.

 _"Oh, man,"_ Hitomi thought. _"It's over."_

Like he did back in the Trick Tower, Killua took a couple of steps and stood behind him. Seconds later, Dorado fell in the ground spitting blood.

"Killua-san is amazing!" Zushi exclaimed. "He is a genius! The three of you are so strong!"

"As much as I hate saying it, just Killua," Hitomi admitted.

"Yeah," Gon nodded. "He was strong to begin with, now that he knows Nen, he probably is as strong as any Floor Master."

* * *

"You're a genius, Killua-san!" Zushi exclaimed. "You were so great!"

"No, it wasn't. I did win, but the match itself was disappointing," he replied. "It was nothing compared to the fight between Gon and Hisoka and the one between Hitomi and Kastro."

"True... Gon-kun and Hitomi-chan's match were significantly good," Wing commented.

"That was a month ago," Hitomi waved her hand. "It's not interesting at all."

"Well, in my case, fighting against Hisoka made me realize that his incredible Nen abilities are only a small part of what makes him such a threat," Gon said. "A lot of it has to do with his unique fighting style and how he uses it. Unless I can figure out how to use Nen my way, I'm no use in real battles. If Hisoka had fought as hard as he could, then I would've been..."

"The fact that you learned something means it was a worthwhile experience," Wing put a hand over his student's shoulder. "Sometimes you learn more by losing than you do by winning. Now Gon-kun, I want you to forget about fighting and concentrate on resting and recuperating for at least the next month."

"Osu!"

Hitomi on the other hand, stretched her hands.

"It has been a while since I had a battle..." she said. "I think I'll-"

"No way," he cut her off. "You too will forget about fighting for the next month."

"Huh?!" her face fell. "But my last match was a month ago!"

"That's right," he nodded. "But I still don't forget when you broke the promise right then."

Hitomi sweatdropped... he still remembered it...

"It happened also a month ago!" she shouted. "Man, are you still angry? You sure are rancorous..."

"Yes I am. You won't fight," he said, a little annoyed, and her cheeks puffed. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yeah... Whatever."

* * *

They were on their way to Killua's room for training, when all of them sensed something off. The doors opened, and they saw the three weird people from the other time.

"Man! Will you ever give up?" Hitomi asked, sighing.

"Aw, don't be like that," Gido said. "Just tell us when you wanna fight. We wanna fight you."

Zushi was puzzled, didn't knowing who these guys were.

"They're all fighters from the 200th floor, just like Killua, Hitomi and me," Gon explained briefly.

"They're like hyenas," Killua added. "They go after rookies to get easy wins. That's why they want to fight us."

Zushi nodded slowly.

"We really can't wait any longer, you know," Sadaso said. "Our application deadline is coming up soon. Come on, let's fight."

"Wing-san told Hitomi and me that we should rest for a while, so-" Gon said.

"Who cares?" he cut him off. "My application is June 15th, why don't we fight then?"

Hitomi raised a finger in the air, they looked at her in confusion. "I'll fight you if you give me just one good reason to care about your deadline," she said. "You don't have any? Good then."

"Idiot," Killua said to him. "Let's go."

And the four of them started to walk away. Sadaso turned around.

"Hitomi-chan, I really want to fight you," he told her.

"It's a pity," she said, still walking. "That is _not_ a good reason. Try again sometime!"

After that, they trained in Killua's room for a couple of hours, before going back to theirs.

* * *

Drowsy, Hitomi opened her eyes and rubbed one of them with her hand. She was feeling a little irritated... Who the hell could be calling at that late?

She picked up, still a little sleepy.

"Hi, Hitomi-chan," the voice said. All the tiredness she had vanished into thin air when she recognized his voice.

"Guido?" she asked. "What the hell do you want?"

"Take a look outside your door," he instructed her. "You'll see what's going on."

As quickly as she could, the girl opened the door. Her eyes opened in surprise when she found a shoe lying on the floor.

She took it and narrowed her eyes, recognizing it.

 _"Zushi..."_

She gritted her teeth.

"What do you want?" Hitomi spoke, anger building deep inside her.

"Not a word of this to anyone," Guido said. "Just do as I say and by tomorrow the four of you will be training together again."

"You bastard..."

And like that she was forced to break her promise.

* * *

Killua entered on Wing's room and Zushi greeted him energetically.

"Hey, I heard that you helped Zushi out last night," the teacher said.

"It was nothing," he replied, taking his cap off. "How are you doing?"

"I'm feeling just fine, thanks!" Zushi said. "I guess I was even more tired than I thought."

"You were the one who found him, right, Killua?" Gon asked.

"Yeah, just after you guys left my room yesterday, I got a weird phone call," Killua said. "Someone told me that my friend was asleep in the arena, so I went out to see if it was true. That's when I found you and brought you back here."

Hitomi narrowed her eyes in suspicion. Killua was telling them a lie, she was sure about it.

At the same time, the boy found the girl quieter than usual. The toughness she held was evident in his eyes.

She knew too about it too.

"Anyway, Wing-san..." Killua called his attention.

"Your next match, right?" he asked. "Hitomi-chan was asking me for permission to do the same."

Killua narrowed his eyes. _"I knew it,"_ he thought, looking at her.

"What date is yours?" Wing asked.

"June 15th," he smirked. "My birthday."

"It's okay. But I want you to rest up and heal as much as possible until then so you'll be in peak physical condition for the match."

* * *

"Killua," Hitomi said, confronting the guy. "They blackmailed you too, right? So did Gon."

"Yeah," Killua admitted.

She got closer to him, resting her hands on the handrail he was leaning on.

"And Wing knows all about this..." Hitomi admitted.

Killua nodded and she looked at the sky in silence. After a while, she released a long sigh.

"I just don't wanna lose on purpose... with those guys in particular..." she complained. "But then they will go after Zushi... This is _irritating!"_

"Don't worry," he told her, smiling. "Don't worry about a thing."

Hitomi gave him a long look, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm getting worried now..." she murmured. "Well, I'm off."

He smiled at her and she raised her thumb. After that, she got away from Wing's place. She started to slowly make her way to her room.

Absent-mindedly - and maybe because she was bored - she took of her cell phone, dialed her brother's number and pressed it in her right ear.

It ringed, and ringed, and ringed... Hitomi was getting irritated... and the phone _ringed._

After a long sigh, she clicked the off button.

 _"What the hell is that idiot doing?"_ she thought, annoyed.

She passed in front of a candy store and stared for a bit. Hitomi shook her head and took a few steps ahead...

Before turning around and entering there.

 _"I think I'll slap myself after this..."_

* * *

Zushi, Gon and Hitomi stared at Killua among the public. His opponent wasn't there, even if he was supposed to. There had passed a lot of time, but Sadaso had never shown up... That was just weird.

"Uh, I've just received a note here," the commentator said. "Apparently, Sadaso isn't in his dressing room. Also it appears as though his private residence has been cleared out and his luggage and personal belongings are all gone. So I guess that means..."

"Time violation!" the judge declared. "According to the regulations, Sadaso has forfeited the match. The winner is Killua!"

The three of his friends looked at the scene, in huge surprise.

"A forfeit?" Gon murmured.

"Yeah, but it's still a victory!" Zushi exclaimed. "It's a different strategy: winning without fighting! Way to go, Killua-san!"

"Does that count as a strategy?" Hitomi raised an eyebrow.

And then Killua took off his cap and tossed it high into the air, like he was celebrating his non-fighting victory. Hitomi's eyebrow twitched.

"Trying to look cool... arrogant prat," she murmured.

After the match, they waited for Killua to reach them in the corridor. Once he saw them, a smile drawn itself in his features. Then he started to run towards them, happily.

"Let's go celebrate my second win! You treat!" he declared.

"Okay, let's go for ramen then!" Gon exclaimed.

"Are you kidding me?!"

Zushi and Gon started to run, trying to get away from him. Killua and Hitomi looked at each other and grinned widely.

"Let's go then!" she declared, walking past him but throwing a plastic bag over her shoulder, which the boy caught. "I'm sorry, it slipped from my hand. Oh well, you can have it as a birthday present."

Killua looked at the bag in surprise and opened it. He just chuckled at the sight of a chocolate box inside it.

"Why is this for?" he smirked mischievously.

"Don't ask," she asked, blushing a little bit. "Take it or leave it, I don't care."

The boy grinned like a cat would do a put his right arm around her shoulders, using his left index finger to poke her cheek.

"Aww... you care about me~" he mocked.

"At least you are going to die as a thirteen-year old boy..." she muttered, as a vein popped up in her head.

* * *

Before the match against the other two guys, Wing made them show him how far they've advanced with their Hatsu.

"I'll go first," Gon declared.

As soon as he put his hands on the glass, the water started to gush out, soaking the table and even spilling in the floor.

"Now it's your turn, Killua," Wing said.

Killua used his Nen and when it was ready, the three put a finger on the water and tasted it. It was so sweet that could be easily mistaken with honey.

"Well, I guess it's my time," Hitomi smirked.

The girl put her hands around the glass and the leaf started to shake violently. It spined a few times before shooting out the water and sticking in the wall.

Wing smiled at them, in a approvingly way.

"Gon-kun, Killua-kun and Hitomi-chan, it looks like you three are in good physical condition," he said. "After your matches are over, I'd like to discuss them with you, so please meet me back here, okay?" the three nodded at him. "All right, the best of luck."

* * *

Hitomi had to wait for Killua and Gon's fight to end, so she decided to get something to eat while she watched Killua's fight by TV. She could be watching Gon's, but she already knew Gido's way of fighting.

 _"Electrocution doesn't work on Killua..."_ she thought, uninterested, as she took another bite of her food. _"What is he made of anyway?"_

And after the match was over, the two boys walked over to her.

"Eating already?" Killua teased. "Now I understand why are you that fat."

"Well, I prefer that than having that geezer-like face of yours," Hitomi replied.

"What, you-!"

However, Gon grabbed his arm and dragged him before Killua could ever touch her, as Hitomi waved after them. A little time passed by, and they came back with hamburgers in their hands.

"You two are gonna fight him later," Killua, now calmed down, commented. "You're not gonna be able to beat Riehlvelt the same way I just did, because if you grab onto of those electrified whips, you'd be knocked out of cold. What are you guys gonna do?"

"It's okay, I've got a plan," Gon said.

"Me too," Hitomi said.

Killua smirked at the two.

"How are you gonna fight Gido?" Gon asked them.

"I'm gonna think on something," Killua placed his hands behind his head.

"I have already thought in something about that too," Hitomi smirked, taking off the dagger she used in the Hunter Exam and showing it to them. "I have my ways."

* * *

Hitomi stood in there, watching Gido spinning with a raised eyebrow. How come he never got dizzy doing that?

He fired a lot of tops and she chuckled. Without moving an inch, she used Ren, blocking all possible attacks.

"So, it's my turn?" she asked, playfully.

Hitomi took a knife of her pocket and held it like a dart. She narrowed her eyes, to gain precision in her shot.

Gido didn't stop, thinking that she would aim at his face. Hitomi shot her knife, but didn't hit where he expected. It hit the thing he was spinning in, breaking it. She then walked and stood in front of him.

"I won," she grinned.

Before stepping hard in his belly.

"The winner of this match is Hitomi!" the judge exclaimed.

She got off the ring and found the other two boys. It looked like Gon had won the match too. Killua, on the other hand, got closer to her with an irritated expression in his face.

 ** _WHACK!_**

"Why did you do that for, idiot?!" she yelled, rubbing her sore head.

"You broke the thing he was spinning on! He won't be able to fight!"

Hitomi just blinked at him.

"Attention please," the voice in the speakers said. "The match, Killua versus Gido, has been canceled. Killua wins by forfeit."

Killua glared at her.

"Oh, sorry," she replied, irritating Killua even more. "Well, goodbye."

The last battle she had to fight was between her and Riehlvelt. He was furious, maybe because of losing two matches in a row, both in the most pathetic way he could have thought of.

He had already his whips drawn and ready. The girl, on the other hand, just stood there with her hands on her pockets.

He tried to attack her, but she grabbed the whip with her hands.

"How-?!" he was about to ask, when he saw the gloves in her hands.

"Rubber gloves, idiot," she smirked.

And as Gon did, she entangled him with his own whip and switched the power. Hitomi smirked at the sight.

"You have been defeated three times in a row by you own whip..." she murmured. "You should consider changing your weapon."

* * *

As they had been told, the three of them visited Wing and Zushi once they have won their matches.

"You three did very well today. You have demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the four basic elements of Nen," he told them. "I have nothing more to teach you."

That took Hitomi by surprise. It was all over?

"Continue to refine the basics through hard work and creativity and you will discover more about your Nen abilities. Everyone is unique, so develop these abilities in ways that can express your own individuality," he continued. "Know what you believe in. Know what makes you mad. Know what you love, what you want, where you'll go and who you'll meet. All these experiences will shape your future and will also direct you to the Nen type that's best suited to your personal nature. If you can manage that, you'll be heading in the right direction. Now, Gon-kun, Hitomi-chan, you have passed the secret Hunter Exam."

Hitomi blinked, as confused as Gon.

"Secret?" Killua asked.

"The Hunter Exam that the general public knows about is just the beginning," he explained. "Learning to master Nen is considered the secret Exam."

"Wow... I've passed an exam I didn't know I was taking..." Hitomi murmured in disbelief.

"Mastering Nen is a fundamental requirement as a Hunter, because a Professional Hunter needs to be strong," he continued. "Nen is a great power, but if it's used for evil, it can become a destructive force. Publicly making it a requirement of the main Exam is too dangerous so it's not on it. Only those who passed that part of the Exam are permitted to take the secret test."

Hitomi blinked once again. She became a Hunter... once again? That was confusing.

"So, Wing-san, does this mean you were gonna reach us Nen right from the beginning?" Gon asked.

"And you acted like it was a big deal," Killua sighed. "What a joke."

"Wait a minute, how did you know that we would be here in first place?" Hitomi said, with disgust. "You are a stalker after all!"

"There's no predetermined path for the secret Exam. Anyone with a Hunter License will be exposed to the existence of Nen whether they're looking for it or not," he said. "It just happens that you three met me by coming here."

The three of them nodded in understandment.

"By the way, I've been teaching you in the ways of Shingen-ryu and the Grand Master of that school is President Netero. He told me about you," he said, before directing to Killua, "Killua, please retake the Hunter Exam. I am certain that you can pass it."

"Yeah... Maybe someday."

"Hey, Wing-san, do you know how the others are doing right now?" Gon asked.

"Yeah. Hanzo and Kurapika have already learned Nen while studying under different masters. Leorio is planning to start his training after he takes the entrance exam for the medical school. And Pokkle seems to be having a difficult time mastering Ren."

The three smiled.

"I see. I thought my idiotic brother would be dead already," Hitomi joked.

"You know, there's something really curious about that. When Kurapika met his master he already knew about the existence of Nen," he said, making Hitomi flinch slightly.

Hitomi laughed nervously while both boys stared at her in surprise.

"We have a loose-tongued one among us, don't we?" Killua mocked.

"Shut up, I just told him the name!" Hitomi said, embarrassed. "We knew that Nen existed before because of Zushi, remember? It's the same!"

They laughed a little bit. Before then, Wing's expression became serious again.

"Remember this, you three. There's still more for you to do," he said. "You don't even know what you're made of yet. Figure that out and try to expand your potential as much as you can. That's why you train. Train hard, but remember to play hard too. Enjoy your lives to the fullest. That's all I have to say. So congratulations, the three of you have graduated as of today."

The kids didn't say anything. They stared at their teacher, surprise written all over their faces.

"Over the past four months, you were able to uphold the teachings and were able to face your inner selves. Nen training is, above all else, a struggle within ourselves. All I've really done is guide you," Wing added, smiling kindly. "You're some of the best students I've ever had, and I never saw either of you brag about the natural talent you have. It has been an honor teaching you. Take care of yourselves."

"Osu!" the reply of the three kids echoed in all the place, as the last rays of the sun painted the sky in beautiful colors.

It was night now and the three of them were waving at Wing and Zushi, hoping fervently to see them once again, someday.

"Well, we've learned the basics of Nen, you paid back Hisoka and we've earned all the money we need," Killua said after a while. "There's no point on sticking around."

"We've got about a month and a half before September 1st," Hitomi added. "What are we gonna do until then?"

"Guys?" he called them, a little unsure of how to say whatever he wanted to say. "I thought.. maybe... You two wanna come home with me?"

"On Whale Island?" Hitomi asked, a little excited. Gon nodded shyly.

"It isn't as big as Killua's, and we are kinda poor, but-" he trailed off.

"Sounds great!" Killua exclaimed. "I wanna see your house!"

"I also wanna meet Mito-san," Hitomi grinned widely. "Let's go then!"

* * *

This is the end of another chapter!

I'd like thanks as always...

 **JokeLover123** **:** Your smile is creeping me out a little... *slowly backs up* XD Just kidding! Thanks for reviewing and I hope you liked this chapter as well.

 **Mr. Kohen** **:** No problem with the sign in today, so here you have my update :) Thank you for leaving a review! I wish you had fun with today's chapter!

 **SoulXHunter:** I had thought about water at first, but it won't be the case. You'll have to wait a little more for it! And about the scarlet eyes thing... you'll have to wait too (now I realize that I'm always telling you to wait... sorry) Anyway, thanks for leaving a review! Let's hope you liked the chapter :)

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it!

See you all later!


	17. I'm Home x I'm Hitomi x I'm Killua

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 17: I'm Home x I'm Hitomi x I'm Killua**

Hitomi closed her book and released a long sigh. She sighed and took once again her cell phone to call to Kurapika.

"The number you have dialed is currently unavailable."

She gritted her teeth, before hanging up. She stared to her phone once again, sighing in worry. She had predicted this a long time ago... but...

 _"That idiot..."_ she murmured in her head.

Hitomi looked at her right and saw Killua, who was meditating, trembling slightly. She furrowed her eyebrows as she saw him clenching his fists.

She then sat at his side and put a hand over his, which stopped clenching, and his trembling disappeared. He looked at her, with wide eyes, before softening his blue gaze.

"What's wrong?" she asked, taking away her hand.

"Nothing," he mumbled. "I was... just... remembering things."

"Like Illumi?" she added. He nodded before she waved her hand around. "Just forget it. He can't get you now because Gon and I have kidnapped you."

"Maybe..." he murmured.

They looked at each other and grinned. Killua seemed to forget about Illumi and Hitomi stopped worrying about her brother. It was nice to be between friends.

"Hey, kids!" the navigator called them. "It's your stop!"

Both of them stood and went upstairs.

"We're here?" Killua asked.

"Yeah! Why don't you two take a look?"

They did as they were told and looked outside the window. Far away, in the middle of the sea, there was a huge island with the form of a whale.

"So that's it..." Killua commented.

"Now I can see why it's called Whale Island..." Hitomi murmured, before turning around to see the captain. "Where's Gon?"

"Where he always is," he replied.

"I see," she replied. "Thanks!"

Hitomi and Killua looked at Gon, who was sitting in the mast. They smiled a little bit before climbing up and sitting down next to him.

"That's Whale Island," he grinned.

"I can tell," Hitomi smirked. "Looks pretty nice."

"Well, It's probably about half the size of my family's state," Killua commented.

"Yeah, but your place is way too big anyway!" Gon replied.

"You are a rich bastard after all," the girl said, a little annoyed.

"I guess so..."

The three grinned once again, before looking to the island where was Gon's home. Once they arrived, Hitomi and Killua looked at the place in amazement.

"Wow, it's been such a long time since I stood on my own land," Gon commented. "Oh, the smell of the air..."

The boys inhaled air soundly and Hitomi just stared. She raised an eyebrow, looking at the puffed cheeks of her friends.

The three started to laugh because their silly and childish action.

"Hey, kids!" the navigator said, throwing at them three apples. "Parting gifts!"

"Thank you for everything!" Hitomi waved.

"Yeah, thanks!" Killua shouted.

"Thanks for the ride!" Gon exclaimed.

And after that, the boat got away. Killua looked at Gon.

"Where do we catch a ride around here?" he asked. "You know, the bus to your house."

"Oh, there's no bus," Gon replied.

"Then exactly how are we supposed to get there?"

Gon pointed at his feet making Killua stare at him like he was nuts.

"Not every house is a tourist spot like your place," Hitomi told him.

"Yeah, also we'll have to walk all way home along the river," Gon pointed at the road ahead.

"Walk... from here?" he asked, puzzled. "And we're going now?"

"Yeah! If we start now, we should get there around noon tomorrow."

"But what're we gonna eat until then?"

"Oh my god, you're annoying asking that much!" Hitomi sighed, before raising the apple the man had given them. "We can eat this."

"This?" Killua stared at his apple. "Just this..."

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched, before gently pushing Gon to the road. The earlier they parted, the earlier they arrived to Gon's home after all.

"Ah, Gon!" he shouted, running to catch them up. "Don't leave your guest behind!"

* * *

"Mito-san!" Gon shouted. "I'm back!"

Hitomi and Killua stared in amazement at Gon's house as the boy ran ahead. It was a huge tree in the middle of its roof, like it was growing out of it.

"What a weird place to live..." Killua murmured.

"Yeah, because having a mountain as a garden is far more normal..." Hitomi rolled her eyes, before smiling a little. "Well, let's go then."

Killua smiled as well. They started to walk in silence, looking with curiosity the natural surrounding, remaining Hitomi a little of her old Kuruta Clan. The forest where she used to live was as quiet and relaxing as Whale Island.

Both children rounded the corner to see Gon, being hugged by a woman, who they supposed was Mito, his aunt. An old woman was smiling at him as well.

"How could you forget to write us a letter? Come on," she scolded him.

Both women noticed the presence of Gon's two friends and looked at them. Killua immediately pulled his hands away from his pockets and straightened up, blushing at the sudden attention they were getting. Hitomi on the other hand blinked a few times, before smiling politely.

"Gon, who are they?" Mito asked.

"Oh, we met during the Hunter Exam," Gon exclaimed. "He is Killua and she is Hitomi."

"Hi," Hitomi said, politely.

"Hello," Killua said, way _too_ politely.

Hitomi raised an eyebrow at him and chuckled at his unusual uneasiness.

"Oh right, these are the kids you wrote about in your letter," she smiled kindly.

"Hello there," the grandmother said. "It's so nice of you two to travel all this way."

"Gon, this is the first time you've ever brought friends home," Mito commented.

The girl, feeling a little more relaxed, nodded her head. Gon's aunt stepped closer to them. She bend over slightly and stared at their faces with a smile.

"Killua-kun and Hitomi-chan, right?" she said. "I'm Gon's aunt, Mito. I hope you'll feel right at home here."

"Thank you, Mito-san," Hitomi replied in a well-mannered way. Killua smiled shyly.

"Come in, guys!" Gon said happily.

Gon and the other two women entered first on the house. Just before doing it as well, Hitomi tapped Killua's shoulder and grinned.

"I have never thought you could be that shy around strangers," she teased, poking his cheek with her finger. "How cute~"

"Shut up," he replied, annoyed and blushing in embarrassment.

Once inside, they were taken to the kitchen. Mito started to pace everywhere, looking for something to cook for them.

"I really wish you would've let me know beforehand that you were coming home, Gon!" she grumbled. "I could've prepared something. You know, it's not every day we have guests in the house."

"R-Really, it's fine," Killua sluttered.

"Now that you mention it, we are kinda hungry," Gon grinned. "We've been walking since last night."

"That explains why you're so dirty," she nodded. "Why don't you boys go and take a bath while I make you something to eat? After you are done, Hitomi-chan can take one."

"Huh?" Gon exclaimed. "Right now?"

"Of course!" she exclaimed. "Just leave me your clothes. I'll wash them later. You'd better get going."

They looked at each other for a second, before she started to count. Gon seemed to panic, and pushed Killua to make him move quicklier.

"You have too much power over Gon, don't you?" Hitomi laughed nervously.

"You can say that," Mito replied. "Meanwhile, Hitomi-chan, make yourself home."

"Want me to help you?" she asked. "I mean... maybe not _cooking_ , because it could bring some deaths to this house, but... I can... I don't know."

"You are so cute," Mito smiled, making the girl look away in embarrassment. "Don't worry, you are my guest. I won't let you touch anything in this kitchen."

She smiled, in thanks, before looking at the window. From where she was, she could see the wide sea and couldn't deny it was beautiful.

It was like she was back home.

"What happens?" the grandmother asked when Hitomi spaced out.

"Oh, nothing," she replied. "It just that... it's a beautiful view."

"Then you should see it from Gon's room," she smiled, before pointing at the stairs. "It's upstairs, if you please."

Hitomi nodded energetically.

"Thank you!"

After that, she entered to Gon's room and looked to the window. It was just lovely. The blue skies, the green forest and even the sound of the birds chirping happily. It was somehow relaxing.

Taking advantage of that quietness, Hitomi sat on her friend's bed and started meditating to train his Nen. She smiled softly, remembering Wing's classes about Nen and everything back at the Heavens Arena.

 _"Learn Ten, know Zetsu and through Ren attain Hatsu!" Zushi said, bowing a bit."_

Hitomi opened her eyes, remembering that time, but now questioning herself. Ten had it's use, so did Ren and Zetsu... but what about Hatsu?

 _"It isn't just meant to move around a leaf, is it?"_ she thought. _"I'm a Manipulator... manipulate... control..."_

She then eyed the bird who was still chirping and an idea crossed her mind. Before making sure that no one was looking at her, she stretched her hand to the bird and performed Ren.

Hitomi moved her hand a little at her right and opened her eyes in surprise, doing that once again. It was awesome... It was like the bird's chirp was moving, but it wasn't like this.

 _"Oh my god!"_ she thought. _"For goodness sake, I'm controlling the sound! That's great! I mean, I'm great! I have-"_

 ** _BANG!_**

She had got distraught and it was like the sound wave collided with the wall. She paled, looking at the huge hole she had made in Gon's wall.

 _"Maybe I need a little more training..."_ she concluded, turning already blue.

"What was that?!" Mito asked from downstairs, in worry. "Are you okay, Hitomi-chan?!"

"It's nothing at all!" she replied in a rush, sweatdropping.

Hitomi then moved the curtain a little to cover it and turned around. It looked like it was time to see if Gon and Killua were already over with the bath...

* * *

After Hitomi took her bath, she sat down next to Killua and Gon, the food was ready. Hitomi did her best to not drool over it. It looked really good.

Then when she tasted it, realized that it wasn't only the looks. It _tasted_ really good.

"It tastes great!" Killua exclaimed.

"Mito-san's cooking is the best in the whole world." Gon commented.

"I can see that," Hitomi murmured, before eating again.

Mito just smiled, before putting two more plates in front of Killua and Hitomi and they nodded in thanks. The boy then paled at the sight of red peppers.

"Okay..." he murmured, putting them in another plate. "That's... a no..."

"Killua-kun?" Mito said. "You shouldn't pick at your food like that. Don't you know that red peppers are good for you? You should at least try them."

"Actually, I'm not a big fan..."

"Oh, good! At least you're not allergic to them!" Mito cried happily, Killua flinched. "They are delicious. Go ahead and take a bite."

"She's right," Gon supported his aunt. "Just give it a try!"

Killua stared at his fork, reminding Hitomi of when she tried chocolate for the first time. After a long breath, he took a bite...

Before spitting it out in disgust, drooling.

"Mom, quick!" Mito cried. "Get a towel!"

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched, disgusted at it.

 _ **SMACK!**_

"Why was that for?!" Killua shouted, rubbing his sore head.

"That's gross..." she muttered under her breath.

After all Killua's saliva fiasco and eating, Mito asked them about the Exam, curiously. Gon showed her his license, and she flexed it. Gon quickly stole it from her hands.

"I was only joking! As if I would ever do something like that!" she laughed.

 _"She wasn't joking..."_ the three of them thought in union.

* * *

The three were on the roof, trying to make the internet accessible in Gon's house. Hitomi and Gon, more likely, were the ones doing the hard work. Killua was leaning in a wall, with his arms behind his back.

"Gon!" Mito called him. "I'm going out for a little while. Could you watch the place?"

"Yeah, okay!" he replied. "Take care!"

He grinned mischievously at both of his friends. Hitomi hold her hands up in defense.

"No way!" she said. "Ask Killua, he isn't doing anything!"

Killua blinked... But ended up going to the bar to take care of it.

After finishing their job, the other two grinned and stared at the sky for a long time.

"By the way, Gon," she said. "Do you even know anything about your father?"

"Just the name and physical appearance," he admitted. "Mito-san doesn't tell me anything about him."

"I see..." she murmured. "Then, how does it look?"

"I have a photo if you want," Gon suggested. "It's in the bar, if you wanna take a look."

Hitomi nodded, she was curious after all. She got downstairs and got to the bar, where Killua was resting his head in his hands.

"Hey, Killu-!"

She stopped in mid sentence when she looked at him properly. He was peacefully slumbering with his head resting on the table.

 _"Wait... Is he really...?"_

Hitomi could not believe it and stepped closer to him, to stare once again. She used her finger to poke his cheek but he didn't respond to her touch.

Killua was sound asleep.

She had never seen Killua sleeping before, maybe because he was always on guard... Assassins' stuff.

She kneeled down and looked at him in amazement. She folded her arms and rested her chin over them, without taking her violet eyes off his relaxed form.

 _"He looks peaceful and even a little innocent..."_ she thought, softening her gaze. _"He's kinda cute like this."_

It was all quiet, Killua's soft intakes of air was the only thing to broke the silence. Hitomi found herself liking the atmosphere. Also, she felt herself relaxing as well just by hearing Killua's calm breathing.

Absent-mindedly, she brushed his white bangs at one side, before her eyes opened on slight surprise. Unable to hold back, she ran her fingers through his hair.

 _"It's too soft!"_ she cried in her head.

Hitomi was about to draw her hand out of the boy's head, when a voice ran through her ears.

"What are you doing?"

She jumped, stepping back but making a cup spill some juice in her shirt. Hitomi didn't care about that, though. She looked at Gon's grandmother and flushed in embarrassment.

"I-I wasn't doing anything!" she stuttered.

The woman laughed, making Hitomi look away. She stepped closer and looked at Killua as well, smiling kindly.

"Would you be so kind to take him to Gon's bedroom?" she asked. "I'll take care of the place."

"O-Okay," she murmured.

Hitomi took him in her back and started to walk away. His breath in her shoulder and this soft hair tickling her neck make her cheeks even redder.

 _"Damn, I'm becoming Leorio..."_ she wanted to slap herself at it. _"I'm such a pervert!"_

She entered in Gon's bedroom and placed Killua's limp body in a bed, before covering him with blankets. She sighed, before walking away and closing the door behind her.

"Did something happen?" Gon asked her, who was with Mito talking.

"Oh, yeah," Hitomi said. "The idiot fell asleep in his job."

"Wait, Hitomi-chan," Mito said, looking at her shirt. "You should change your clothes."

"Right, I forgot..." she said, before grabbing her bag and searching for comfortable clothes.

"Let me see..." the woman said, looking inside it, before retiring the only Kuruta-like dress she had. "Look, isn't it lovely?"

Hitomi blinked.

"But-"

"Come, come..." she dragged her to a room. "You have to sometimes wear pretty things, especially if you are that pretty yourself."

She had no more option than obey her.

* * *

Killua opened his eyes slowly and looked around in confusion. He just didn't remember falling asleep in a place like that.

"Oh, you're up now, huh?" Gon asked. "You fell asleep on the job."

He looked through the window, just to see Gon's hair being cutted by Mito. Hitomi appeared and sit on it.

"Man, you're heavy!" she exclaimed. "I had to drag you all the way here!"

Killua stared at her and blinked a few times. She was wearing a traditional orange dress and her blonde hair had been prettily braided by Mito a minutes ago. He had to admit it, she looked nice.

"Doesn't she look cute?" Gon asked, grinning.

The boy stared at her.

"You look..." he trailed off.

Hitomi raised an eyebrow, waiting for his answer.

"You look like a girl," he finished, sticking his tongue to her.

 ** _SMACK!_**

"Shut up, Cat-head!" she murmured, withdrawing her hand from his head.

They glared for a long, long time. Gon and his aunt sweatdropped, smiling nervously.

 _"Oh my god. I wonder how did I manage to think about him like that?"_ Hitomi facepalmed.

* * *

Together once again, the three friends law down in the ground, looking at the twinkling stars in the dark sky above them.

"Hey, guys," Killua asked. "What do you plan on doing next?"

"I was thinking of staying here until the end of August to gather some information," Gon told him. "And then in September 1st, I'll go to Yorkshin City and start looking for my dad."

"I think I'll be sticking around you guys until I find a couple of Scarlet Eyes," Hitomi shrugged. "Then, maybe, I'll be sticking around my brother instead... and avoiding to get him killed by _himself._.. I don't really know."

"I see..." he murmured. "I wonder what I should do."

"Why don't you stay here and go to Yorkshin City with us?" Gon suggested.

Killua pushed himself into a sitting position and looked at them.

"That's not what I was talking about," he said. "It's great that you two know what you want to do. There's nothing I really want to do. There are lots of things I don't want to do, like living at home and taking over the family business. But when it comes to what I want to do... I kinda envy you."

"Killua, I like hanging out with you," Gon said.

"Well, even though you are pretty insufferable sometimes, I kind of enjoy the company," Hitomi admitted.

"Hey, you two," he blushed slightly. "Cut it out!"

Hitomi sighed, pushing herself and sitting like the boys.

"Whale Island is an outpost for fishermen far from their mainland homes, so there aren't many kids here," Gon confessed. "And I've always been home schooled, so you're the first friends I've had who are around my age."

"I can understand that. Back in my clan, there were a handful number of people from my age and, considering that I have never been a social person, I've never managed to get along with them," Hitomi told them. "So, you are my very first friends too."

"It's kinda the same for me," Killua said, kind of surprised. "I did get to leave my estate lots of times, but it was always because I was being sent off to get more training on how to become a better assassin. It was always a life or death situation. You two are my first friends, ever."

Hitomi smirked. She had never realized that the three of them were _that_ similar.

"So, do you like hanging out with us, Killua?" she asked.

"Yeah, sure," he replied. "I guess."

"Then let's just stay together!" Gon cried, happily. "We could go to different places and see things. I'll search for my dad, Hitomi for the Scarlet Eyes, and you, Killua, can look for what you want to do!"

"Sounds fun," Hitomi nodded, smiling.

"It doesn't sound bad..." Killua agreed, before raising his fist. "Alright, I'll go with you guys while you search for those things until I figure out what I want to do!" But then, curiosity hit his mind. "Hey, you never told us about your mother, Gon."

"She died, I was told she was always sickly. Mito-san has raised me like her own, so I didn't really talk about my mom. It's the same with my dad," Gon replied. "If I hadn't met Kite, I wouldn't have tried to find out about him. I know Mito-san hid the truth about my dad because she wanted avoid talking about him... Also, Mito-san is the only mother I'll ever know. Because whenever I try to think of my mom, I can't imagine anybody except her."

"I wish I had a mom like Mito-san," Killua commented.

"Yeah, she is kinda nice…" Hitomi smiled, still remembering the times in her home. "She kinda reminds me mine."

* * *

They were trying to search for Gon's father in the internet, when Mito called them for eating. Once finished, Hitomi and Killua stood up.

"Well then… I'm gonna go pick up where we left off," Killua said.

"Me too," Hitomi nodded.

"Okay, I'll do the dishes," Gon declared.

"That won't do, you three. You better call it a night and continue tomorrow," Mito said. "Working in the morning is much better than making yourself work through the night. It's not like the internet's going to run off anywhere, right?"

Killua placed his hands behind his head and sighed.

"Well, I'll cooperate so Mito-san won't get more wrinkles," he teased, making the woman's face fell. "Women past their prime age really need to be careful, right Hitomi? I bet you know better."

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched, before the boy started to run upstairs.

"What does it was supposed to mean?!" she yelled, chasing him. "You hoary-haired, old geezer!"

When they arrived at Gon's room, they made their beds. Hitomi shook her head, when she saw that Killua feel asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

She, however, wasn't having as luck as him. She couldn't get any sleep, because two things. Point one, a cricket's chirping was annoying the hell out of her. Point two, she was worried - yeah, _again_ \- about Kurapika.

She sighed, taking her cell phone to try to call her brother once again. Once again too, he had turned his phone off.

Hitomi stared at it before an idea crossed her mind. She started dialing another different number. He, unlike Kurapika, picked up after a few rings.

"Hi, Wing!" she greeted. "What's up?"

"Hitomi-chan, may I know why did you call me?" he replied.

"I just wanted to say hi… is that bad?"

Wing stayed silent for a minute, causing her imagine him raising an eyebrow at the other side of the phone.

"Well, right, I'm calling you for Nen stuff," she admitted. "Actually, I wanted to make you a question. Do you remember I'm a Manipulator?"

"You're trying to master Hatsu, don't you?" he asked.

"Yeah," she replied. "Just asking, is convenient for me to... I don't know... control _sound_?"

That took the man by surprise, and he asked in a confused voice.

"Sound?"

"Yeah, sound. Sound waves, you know. That stuff," Hitomi explained, nervously. "But it's _that_ lame I can search for something else, just-"

"No, no, it's okay. As long as it's comfortable for you, you can try," he said. "But the only thing is that it could be difficult. Sound needs a lot of concentration to manipulate and if you lose your focus even for an instant, you can blow up something. You need to train it a lot to properly manipulate it."

"That's all?" she said. "Alright, I think I'll train then. This Hatsu thing sounds interesting. See ya!"

She was about to turn off the phone, when her teacher cried her to stop.

"Wait a minute, Hitomi-chan, I need you to make you a request," he said. "Please, avoid telling Killua-kun and Gon-kun about all of this."

"Huh?" she said, confused. "Why?"

"They have to discover the truth of Hatsu's power from themselves," Wing replied. "You can use your technique as long as you want, but don't tell them how you actually do that."

"Okay..." she replied, unsure. "I think I can..."

After that, the call ended. She sat down and realized that Killua was still asleep. She smirked, he couldn't see her, could he?

Hitomi found where the cricket was and kneeled down next to it. She cupped her hands around it and performed Ren, before moving her hands around.

She smiled in joy, hearing the chirp moving around as well, even though the insect was standing still on its place.

Then, Hitomi heard Gon shout something in excitement from the kitchen, and she lost her concentration once again.

 _ **BANG!**_

She looked at the huge crater, next to the one she had made before. She panicked when she heard Killua shifting behind her.

Hitomi turned around, resting her back to the hole in the wall to hide it. Killua tiredly opened his eyes and stared at her, rubbing them.

"What the hell was that?" he groaned drowsily.

"What?" Hitomi pretended to be confused.

"The sound," he replied. "Like an explosion."

She flinched slightly, smiling nervously.

"What sound?" she replied. "Maybe you were dreaming?"

"And then what were you doing standing there?"

"Looking at the window?" her voice sounded like a suggestion and she wanted to slap herself for it.

Killua narrowed his eyes, not believing a word she had said. However, he was too tired to discuss about it.

"Whatever..." he mumbled, turning around. His eyelids dropped and fell silent, falling asleep once again.

Hitomi let out a relieved sigh escape from her lips and proceed to turn around to the hole. She put the hand on the curtain and drew it to hide this one as well.

 _"I think is enough for today,"_ she sweatdropped. _"Killua won't let go that easily next time..."_

* * *

Killua, Hitomi and Gon stared at Ging's box, which had been given to his son by Mito. Even Killua tried to open it by force, but it didn't even budge.

"It's yours once you become a Hunter..." Hitomi's eyes opened in surprise along Killua's. "That's it! There's something we haven't tried yet!"

"Huh?" Gon tilted his head.

"What do you have now that you didn't have before you became a Hunter?" Killua said.

"Ah, I know! A Hunter License!" he shouted happily, trying to put it on it. "But there's no slot..."

Hitomi tried to suppress her laugh but failed. Gon looked at her, puzzled.

"It's not that," a vein popped up in Killua's head. "It's Nen."

The box broke right when Gon used his Nen revelling... anothe _r box_. Hitomi looked at the pieces of the broken one, and recognized the same markings that Wing's thread had.

Gon looked at the smaller box and put his License in the slot and it opened. Inside, there were three things: a memory card, a ring and a cassette tape.

"Hey, look! There's the same pattern inside the band," Killua noticed, looking at the ring. "I think it would be risky putting it on just yet."

"Then, why don't we listen to the tape first?" Hitomi suggested. "It can tell us what to do with these things."

"Sure," Gon said.

"Let's make a copy while we're at it," Killua said. "Just in case."

The two agreed, before playing the tape. After a while, Ging's recorded voice started to sound.

"Hey, Gon. So you've become a Hunter too. There's one question I want to ask. Do you want to see me? If you do, keep listening. If you don't, just press the stop button. You should stop the tape here if you just think it would be nice to see me," Gon didn't move, determined to see him. "So you want to see me that much? Well, I don't want to see you."

Gon's face fell and Hitomi sweatdropped.

 _"Nice father..."_ she thought.

"Honestly, I don't know how I could face you. After all, I neglected you for selfish reasons, I'm no good," he said. "At least ten years will have passed since I recorded this tape before you listen to it. During that time, there's one thing that hasn't changed, I will always be the guy I am. Like I said, I don't want to see you. So if I hear you getting close, I'm gonna take off. Try and catch me. You're a Hunter now, aren't you?"

Killua was about to turn the cassette off, but Gon stopped him. Little after, Ging started to talk once again.

"Oh, yeah, one more thing..." he said. "On this tape I've recorded the voice of your mother, the only thing we have left of her. If you want to hear her, keep the tape running. If you don't-"

Gon turned off the tape, saying that Mito was his only mother. He smiled, before turning around to go to eat.

But something happened before then. The tape started rewinding on its own, so they used Gyo to see that the stereo had an aura. It was Nen.

Killua tried to smash it, it was useless. They also tried to use their own Nen against it, but it was fruitless as well.

Ging's voice ended up erasing itself, leaving them with only two things left, the ring and the memory card.

"It's a lot smaller than the standard model," Gon said, as he looked at the memory card. "You think there's a special machine just for this?"

"You don't know about the JoyStation?" Killua asked, speechless.

"I think I read about it..." Hitomi said, in thought. "Somewhere..."

Killua's face fell.

"This is a memory card for a game console called the _JoyStation_ ," Killua said, annoyed at both of his friends.

They turned the computer on and searched in Toy Land for JoyStation. After a while, they found one.

"But unless we have the actual game we can't play it with just the JoyStation and a memory card, right?" Gon asked. "Besides, there's no title or anything written on it either. Can we tell what kind of game is it?"

"You can tell once you put it on the console, even though you can't play it..." Hitomi put a finger under her chin. "I think..."

Killua released a long sigh, before letting himself fall in the floor.

"You two are pretty weird," he said. "Haven't you ever played games before?"

"Oh, excuse me, _rich boy,_ " the girl said, annoyed. "I lived hiding from the outside world and travelling around practically all my life. What do you expect?"

"But I have!" Gon replied Killua's question. "Remember the Trick Tower?"

"That's like a fossil!" Killua shouted.

* * *

Once they got the JoyStation, they found out that the game was called Greed Island, a game exclusively for Hunters. They tried to search of it, but it was all sold out at the price of 5.8 billions a copy.

After a long and fruitless research, Killua stared at his phone with a frown in his face.

"He might have a copy of Greed Island," he muttered.

"What?" Gon asked excited. "Who?"

"I really don't wanna ask him for a favor, but I guess we don't have a choice..."

Hitomi raised an eyebrow. Killua sighed and dialed a number.

"Hey! Gotoh, it's Killua. Listen, could you get Piggy for me?... You're lying. There's no way he'd leave the house. Tell him if he doesn't get on the phone in ten seconds, I'll smash all of his figurines," he said and waited for a while before grinning in his cat-mode. "I was only kidding, Brother. Don't get so mad, you're scaring me."

 _"So, that's Killua's brother..."_ she sweatdropped. _"And he called him Piggy..."_

They discussed for a while, before Killua cut down the line. He smiled, in a apologizing way to Gon.

"Sorry. I promised him the memory card, but I couldn't think of another way to get to him to talk."

"Don't worry, it's okay," Gon reassured.

"Did you get something in exchange?" Hitomi asked.

"Yeah. We've got two solid leads to follow," he replied. "The first one is a website that's exclusively for Hunters."

Gon grinned, turning to the computer and raising his License.

"Oh, yeah! We can use my License!" he exclaimed.

"Don't you dare, idiot!" Hitomi stopped him. "If you use your home computer, your IP address gets out there. What do you imagine that thieves looking for a Hunter License will do?"

"For stuff like this, you should always use public computers like at a cafe or hotel," Killua added. "Either way, we won't be able to go onto the website until we get the URL."

They both looked at Killua, questionably.

"And what's the other lead?" Gon asked.

"The auction at Yorkshin City," Killua replied. "My brother said it might be a rumor, but apparently several Greed Island discs are gonna be auctioned off. He said that a single collector had been hoarding a lot of copies."

"I wonder if that collector is Ging," the boy said.

"Maybe yes, maybe not," Hitomi replied. "In any case, if we want to acquire Greed Island, we have to get a tremendous amount of money. We have to get going..."

They looked at each other, with huge smirks in their faces.

"To Yorkshin City!" the three of them exclaimed.

* * *

That's the end of the chapter! Sorry if the Whale Island Arc was a little too short. I apologize in advance if I disappointed someone with it... Next time, I'll start with the Yorkshin Arc :)

Also, what you saw in this chapter is just a small part of Hitomi's Nen ability. I will expand more about it as the story goes by, but it won't happen until a lot time more.

Anyway, thanks to:

 **SoulXHunter** : Thanks for reviewing! I hope you liked this chapter... even though its a little lame... Sorry.

 **MissAssassinGirl11** **:** Hi again! Thanks for leaving a review! I wish you liked this chapter :)

 **Other Readers:** Thank you for passing by this story! Let's hope you had fun.

See you all later!


	18. Yorkshin City! x Money x Bitter Feeling

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 18: Yorkshin City! x Making Money x Bitter Feeling**

 _"Hi, Hitomi._

 _I'm sorry I couldn't answer your calls. I'm kind of busy, but I promise I will call as soon as I have free time._

 _I found a job, but I don't think I'll have time to see you guys this September 1st. I really apologize._

 _Take care of yourself,_

 _Kurapika."_

Hitomi stared at her brother's text message a little irritated. She had called him a _lot_ of times before, even though she knew that she was annoying him a little...

Anyway, she _worried_ about him. What did she got in exchange? A short, cold text in where he said that he wouldn't have time to meet them. He promised that he would call, but she knew that he just wouldn't do that.

It looked like their _friends_ and his _sister_ were less important for him than his vengeance.

And that feeling stabbed her in the chest like a knife she couldn't take away from her. Even though she would never say it aloud, was scared, really scared. Hitomi was terrified of the thought of losing him, the only family she had left.

"That idiot..." she murmured, smiling sadly.

She decided to not to call Kurapika anymore. If he was being that cold to her, so be it. She could treat him coldly as well.

* * *

The three kids found out in the Hunter's website that the game was more expensive than they had thought and it was going to be sold in the auction. Because of that, they had spend all the day trying to get money by selling things on internet... but some man had tricked them, so they were 10.84 million jenny right now.

"That's what you get by trusting people..." Killua sighed.

"That's why I told you we should only stick with auction sites that people trust!" Gon shouted.

"It took eight hours to make a measly 985 jenny!" Killua shouted back, "How many centuries will it take to make eight billion?!"

"It's better than losing money!"

Hitomi looked around and sweatdropped. Every people in the city were crowded around them, looking at the scene they were making.

"Hey, guys-" she tried to calm them down.

"Shut up, Hitomi!" they yelled at her.

A vein formed in her head, she was really pissed up. To hell the scene they were making and the embarrassment she was feeling before, she was _furious_ now.

"I could make far more money than you two together!" she shouted.

The three of them pressed their foreheads with each other, letting a soft growl escape from their clenched teeth.

"Wanna fight?" Gon said, angered.

"Sure!" Killua replied.

"Okay, it's a battle," Hitomi muttered.

"There are still two weeks before the auction," Gon told them. "So let's see which one of us can make more money!"

"Let's split the money we've got left!" Hitomi suggested. "Whoever makes the most by 9 p.m. on August 31st will be the winner!"

"Fine by me!" Killua shouted. "What if both of you lose?!"

"The losers have to do one thing the winner asks," Gon said, raising a finger.

"It's a deal," Killua smirked. "I'm gonna beat you thoroughly!"

"I'm gonna bring you two down!" Hitomi smirked as well. "Just wait!"

They turned around and after three seconds, they splitted to start their own game.

Hitomi looked around, to see something to help her. She sighed, there was nothing to get money from. She absolutely wasn't going to let the other two win.

She then took a glance of a young man, who was dressed in expensive clothes, putting his wallet in the pocket of her trousers. She smirked.

Hitomi walked past him. In a quick move, she grabbed the wallet and put it in her pockets. She walked a few meters and smirked when she realized that she went unnoticed.

 _"The goody-goody of my brother will kill me if he founds out what I just did,"_ she said, looking at the object she had just stolen. _"Good thing he won't..."_

She opened the wallet and paled at the sight of it. Dramatically, she fell into her knees, cursing herself for her terrible luck.

It was empty.

 _"I choose a guy like Leorio..."_ she sighed _. "Tries to look rich, but he is just poor..."_

She could tell that she was going to lose the bet.

* * *

"Oh, wow!" Gon exclaimed. "There's so many people for it to be so early in the morning!"

"Would you keep it down?" Killua covered Gon's mouth with his hand. "You're embarrassing me!"

"I know the feeling..." Hitomi murmured.

Gon broke free little after, gazing curiously to all the stores.

"Hey now, do you think we've got time for that?" Killua said, annoyed. "We've gotta earn eight billion jenny before the auction starts, remember?"

"I don't need a certain someone who's broke to tell me that, do I?" Gon teased. "It was an elementary mistake to try and get rich by gambling!"

"Shut up! You only earned 15,000 in two weeks!" he shouted, before smirking proudly. "At one point, I was 200,600,000 jenny!"

"But you are zero now," Hitomi added, making Killua flinch.

"I don't want to hear that from someone who didn't manage to make a jenny!" he shouted.

"We are still the same, don't we?" she shouted back. "We're both zero!"

"And even though I didn't make much, I still managed to beat you both!" Gon grinned. "I won our little bet, which means that I get to order you to do one thing."

"Yeah, yeah," the other two said at the same time, annoyed.

Gon noticed something and ran to a store where they sold cell phones.

"That's what you want?" Hitomi asked.

"Yeah. We need some way to contact Leorio and Kurapika, right?" he said. "After all, I'm the only one of you who doesn't have any."

"So you've decided to get one. It's one of the essential items for a Hunter, isn't it?" Killua said. "It's been awhile since I've seen-"

He stopped when he saw Hitomi's expression. She was blankly staring at the cell phones, with a worried expression.

"My brother said he has an assignment so he might not have time to see us," she told them. "He said if he has free time he'll call, but... I don't really believe him," she smiled bitterly. "Not anymore."

Killua just stared at her in silence and narrowed his eyes. It was really strange to see _her_ that upset, specially talking about Kurapika. As long as he remembered, her brother was always the one to worry about her, and now it was on the other way around.

"Believe on Kurapika! I know he will call," Gon grinned, happily. "That's why I'll get a phone like you, guys. I wanna make sure he can get hold of me as well."

They all ended up going to the store, and the man offered them some type of phone that let Gon thinking about choosing it.

"Yeah, I think I'll take it-!" Gon said after a while.

"You don't want that one," a voice, which was really familiar for them, said. The kids turned around with smiles on their faces. "You can't roam with it and it's not even waterproof. There are ones that are much better."

"Leorio!" Gon shouted happily at the sight of him.

Leorio raised a hand in greeting, smiling slightly.

"You guys look the same as the last time I saw you," he told them.

"You too, Rioleo!" Killua joked.

"Yeah, you look as old as the last time we saw you," Hitomi teased as well.

"To you is Le-o-ri-o!" he shouted at Killua, before turning to Hitomi. "And you, how many times do I have to tell you I'm a teenager like you!"

They laughed a little bit at the 'teenager' boy. He then calmed down, showing them some new cell phone called Beatle 07.

"It's a little heavy and pricier, but it works anywhere in the world," he explained. "It translates 200 different languages, you can watch TV on it and record your own movies."

"Seriously?!" Killua shouted. "Gon, get this one! And I'll get one too!"

"I'll too," Hitomi nodded, still amazed.

"Okay then, leave it to me," Leorio said.

Leorio then started to convince the man to lower the price. The three of them looked in amazement as he still tried to get a discount by annoying the man.

"That's pretty incredible..." Killua murmured. "I've never seen anyone haggle over ten jenny before..."

"Whoa!" Gon turned around, to see a huge crowd staring at the scene. "Everyone is watching!"

"And now he's going up one jenny at a time..." Hitomi stared at the scene as well. "I just can't believe it..."

And after the offer of 110,580 jenny, the worker gave up and bought it to them. All the crowd applauded, as amazed as the children.

They walked away and all of sudden, Leorio stopped in his tracks.

"So, you three," he said. "You had to learn Nen, right?"

"Yeah, we sure did," Killua said.

"You're gonna learn it after you're finished with the medical exam, right?" Gon asked.

"Well, no," he said, turning around with a smirk curving in his features. "Since I already have."

* * *

The four of them were talking in the room of the hotel. They had already told Leorio about the game, Greed Island, and how expensive it was.

"But on the treasure list, the level of getting one was 'easy'," Hitomi said. "You only need money."

"The world is all about one thing: money!" Leorio said.

"Yeah, but if all it takes is money to buy something, then it isn't really a treasure, is it?" Killua said, moving around his bunny-like candy. "You're professional Hunters. Shouldn't you be able to get something at this level without a problem?"

Hitomi raised an eyebrow, staring at the boy who was now eating his candy. She turned around, to see Gon and Leorio looking for something in the computer.

 _"Did they really...?"_ she thought. _"Leorio must be an enhancer too... to fall for something like this..."_

She looked at Killua, who grinned like a cat, before sitting next to him. Both of them looked at the other two, disbelieving their simpleness.

"There are also Winner-Takes-All and the Conditional auctions..." Leorio read.

 _"That sounds sexual..."_ Killua blushed, smiling slightly.

Hitomi stared at his flushed face in disbelief, and profoundly disgust.

"I don't even want to know what that dirty mind of yours is thinking..." she murmured.

Leorio and Gon read a little more, before an idea crossed mind of the oldest guy.

"Let's go, Gon, Chibi-chan, Lukia!" he called, pissing both Killua and Hitomi off. "I just thought of a foolproof way for us to make some money."

* * *

"Come on... Step right up!" Leorio shouted. "A Conditional Auction is about to get underway!"

That was Leorio's idea, make a conditional auction for a diamond ring worth three million. The condition was to beat Gon in arm wrestling.

 _"A fraud..."_ Hitomi thought, watching Gon win over an other man, acting that he was trying hard. _"I just hope that Gon doesn't end up breaking someone's arm..."_

After a few hours, the number people challenging Gon decreased. It was understandable, though. The guy had already beaten 150 people, and no one in their right mind would dare to lose money in such a tough boy, or 'monster', how they called him.

An idea hit Hitomi's mind and she smirked. She stood behind Gon and waved her hands.

"Now, now, this kid here is going to take a break!" she announced. "If anyone is still interested in the ring, then they can challenge me instead."

The three boys looked at her in confusion. Leorio took the girl by her shoulders and smiled nervously at the crowd.

"I really apologize," he said. "That little girl has no idea of what she is talking abou-"

"I do," she replied. " _You_ are the one who have no idea of what I'm talking about."

He sighed, before dragging her out the scene.

"Well, since _I'm_ the one who was not idea about it..." he said, annoyed. "Would you mind explaining me what the hell was that?!"

"Easy, saving your time," she replied. "How much time do you think it will take us until you manage to get _all_ the money we need? Especially when all the people are scared of Gon."

"Well, I can understand that," he rubbed the back of his neck. "But what does this have to do with you?"

"Don't you get it?" she smirked, pointing at herself. "I'm a young female, a little girl. Gon can be a kid, but he is still a boy. I think we can use this stereotype in our advantage. Also..." she turned around to see a huge crowd behind them, waiting. "My fans are waiting for me."

And like that, she shooed Gon from his chair and she sat down.

"Now, the first one can come forward, please," she said, politely.

One by one, she defeated them. It wasn't difficult, though. They were just a bunch of bluffers, nothing compared with the Testing Gate back in Killua's house.

But after awhile, a girl challenged her.

"How old are you?" Leorio asked in a friendly way, almost _too_ friendly. "Where did you come from?"

Hitomi raised an eyebrow at him, as the people told him to get serious before turning her head to the woman. She politely bowed.

"Keep your left hands on the table," Leorio instructed as they put their hands together. "Ready... Go!"

This time, Hitomi didn't need to pretend. That girl was really strong, but in the end she ended up losing.

Hitomi rubbed her hand, gasping for air and sweating, as the mysterious girl bowed again and left.

"You were really trying, weren't you?" Killua asked.

"No. I just love to sweat on purpose," she replied with sarcasm, before turning serious once again. "Yeah, I was."

"I wonder who she was..." Gon commented, still amazed. "Hitomi, I will take care of the auction. Rest for awhile if you want."

"Just a little, I'll come back," Hitomi sighed, giving up.

* * *

They took a break for eating, and Hitomi was enjoying her hamburger while Leorio checked how many money they had won.

"We have made 2.5 million jenny so far," he said. "That's not too bad."

"But to get to our goal of 8.9 billion, we need to win over 800,000 more matches," Killua said. "We have a long way to go."

"Gon can do it!" Leorio shouted. "Nothing is impossible for this guy!"

Hitomi raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you forget someone?" she murmured. "I'm still here."

"That's not the problem, it's time," Killua rolled his eyes. "The auction will be long over by the time we make enough money."

The girl was about to comment something else, but the Mafia's cars caught her eye. The underground auction was about to begin.

* * *

 _Once again,_ Hitomi was staring at her cell phone with a frown in her face. She had already given him her new phone number, but... Did Kurapika promise something about calling her? He did. Did he fulfill his promise?

Of course not.

Busy-san had a lot of work to care about them, after all.

"Seriously, you guys actually mastered this stuff?!" Leorio shouted. He was still trying to master Nen.

"It was a piece of cake, wasn't it, Gon, Hitomi?" Killua asked while Gon nodded.

"Huh?" Hitomi said, snapping out of her thoughts. "Oh... Yeah, you are right..."

Killua narrowed his eyes, looking at the phone she was holding. Hitomi's hand was squeezing it unconsciously, in unspoken worry.

"You'll master it in no time, Leorio!" Gon encouraged.

"That's it, I quit! Knowing Ten is good enough for me," he yelled, irritated. "I'm taking off! I'm gonna take a walk."

"This late at night?" Gon asked.

"Yorkshin is a city that never sleeps," Leorio replied. "Things are just getting started for guys like me, but kids should be getting to bed already."

"Leorio," Killua said all of sudden. "If you happen to bump into Kurapika, bring him here. I heard he's busy with some job, but Hitomi's depressed state is annoying the hell out of me."

"I'm not-!" Hitomi was about to shout back.

She stopped in mid sentence when she saw Leorio ruffling Killua's hair, much in his dismay.

"A kid like you who still wears shorts shouldn't be bossing me around," he said. "Hoy about 'Please bring him to us, Leorio-san,' instead of just 'Bring him,' huh?"

"You're the one who's acting big," he replied, annoyed, "Aren't you the halfwit who can only master Ten?"

"Right, that is unbecoming of a gentleman like me. Excuse me," he said. "You kids better be in bed by the time I come back."

And after that, Leorio took his jacket and walked away the room.

"I hope he runs into Kurapika," Gon smiled, looking at the door that Leorio had closed.

"Yorkshin is a lot bigger than Whale Island, you know. There's no way. He'll call sooner or later," he then put a hand over his mouth and blushed slightly. "But anyway, now that Leorio is gone, why don't we check if there is an 'exciting' program on the cable-?"

 ** _SLAM!_**

"You Dummy!" he shouted angered, holding the shoe that she had thrown to him.

"You damn pervert!" she yelled back.

* * *

Hitomi failed to sleep a wink that night. She laid at her back, with her earphones in her ears to calm herself a little bit, but she was wide awake.

"Can you sleep?" Gon asked her all of sudden, while pushing himself in a sitting position. She sat in the bed as well and shook her head.

They looked at Killua. He was watching something, which Hitomi had no intention to know about, and had headphones in his ears.

"Are you still on that?" she asked, but he didn't hear her. His eyes were glued in the televisor and his cheeks were flushed. "Don't bother to answer then, I can see you are..."

"Hey, Killua! Are you listening? Killua!" Gon called him again, Killua didn't hear him like the other time. "KILLUA!"

"Did you say something?" Killua asked, noticing Gon. "It's getting to the good part. You should watch it too, Gon."

"No, that's okay," Gon blushed a little.

"Oh, yeah?" he replied, looking again to the TV. "It's pretty sensational..."

Gon and Hitomi looked at him, speechless. Little after that, the door opened behind them.

"You guys are still up?" Leorio asked.

"Welcome back," Gon said, happily. "So, you didn't see him, after all?"

"I just went for a walk," he replied, taking his jacket off.

"Yeah, right..." Hitomi raised an eyebrow at him. "I _completely_ believe you."

"More importantly, you two, I told you not to stay up late. Why can't you be more like Killua?"

Their heads snapped to Killua's direction. He was lying on his bed, pretending to be soundly asleep.

"What?! When did he-?!" Gon shouted. "Killua, that's dirty!"

"Playing to be innocent?" Hitomi's eyebrow twitched, while she grabbed a pillow. "Don't make me laugh!"

And she threw it to him, in anger.

* * *

Leorio had a plan and it succeeded, that's why there were now in a Conditional Auction managed by the Mafia.

They handed them a paper with photos. Hitomi's eyes flew open when she saw the first girl.

"That girl..." Gon looked at Hitomi. "You arm wrestled against her."

"That's right," Killua commented.

"Yeah..." she trailed off.

Her eyes shone in a blood-like color, before she released a long sigh to calm herself down. Her now violet gaze didn't leave the chart though.

 _"These guys are the ones who killed my family..."_ she clenched her fists.

But, before she knew, they were already in.

* * *

"Hey, what's the matter with you guys?" Gon complained. "Let's go looking for them already!"

"Didn't you sense there was something wrong about that auction just now?" Killua asked.

"Something wrong?" the boy blinked.

The other three just looked at each other. Leorio nodded to Killua, making him to explain the situation. He sighed while Hitomi gazed at her feet.

"Listen. Normally, an auction is a place where you bid for things. Making a prize a paycheck is strange, no matter how you look at it," he explained. "And why was there a ring in the auction hall? I think their original plan was to use that ring for a Conditional Auction like ours."

"However, something happened that required them to change their plans and look for those guys," Leorio added.

"But they were too tough for the Mafia to handle. Therefore, they decided to make a pretense of a Conditional Auction to gather some men who'd find them for a bounty," Killua concluded. "They really want to catch these guys no matter the cost of time it would take."

"Why?" Gon asked.

"Because they stole the items intended, that's the most logical reason of that," Hitomi smiled bitterly, with her eyes being covered by her bangs, "And there's a little number of crazy guys that could've done something like this," she raised her head and her eyes titled in red. "The Spiders."

Gon's eyes flew open as he stared at the photos of the members.

"So these guys are the Genei Ryodan?" he said, surprised.

"Well, they won't pay two billion each for nothing," Killua commented.

"Hitomi," Leorio looked at the girl. "You should contact Kurapika."

She stared at her phone with a frown in her features.

"No way," she said, stubbornly.

"What?" Leorio asked, in surprise.

"I won't call that arrogant idiot," she said, seriously. "I don't think he will answer though."

"But-!"

"You don't have to push her, Leorio," Gon said, "I'll call."

As expected, Kurapika didn't pick up the call.

* * *

Gon got 100 million jenny at the bank, but he had to left his License in the pawnshop as a guarantee. With that money they bought the Southernbees Auction House catalog and found out that the minimum bid for the game was 8.9 billion.

Also the three kids learned to use Gyo to get more valuable items. Even though he felt a little out of it, Leorio decided to stay on the hotel and control everything about the information they had asked about the Spiders.

"Hey guys," Killua said. "Remember, if there's already a bid, you should raise the price by 250 percent!"

"Got it!" Gon shouted before running away.

Hitomi stared at the place where he had been earlier. "Will he be okay? I mean, will _we_ be okay?" she raised an eyebrow. "If he has to calculate all of this... we'll be poor before we know..."

"I hadn't thought about that..." he paled slightly. "I think we just have to trust in Gon's instincts..."

After recollecting many objects - and losing a lot of money because of a guy called Zepile - they went to a man's shop to sell them.

"This painting has been signed by the famous signature alone is worth 150,000," he said, making the kids gasp in surprise. "And the doll also is in good condition and the original box and accessories are intact, increasing the value. This would go for 300,00," they gaped again, before he directed to the sculpture that Gon bought. "On the other hand, this sculpture is worthless I'm afraid."

The kids looked at each other. They could've sworn that they had seen aura on it.

"How can you be that sure?" Hitomi said, feeling a little irritated. "Prove that."

"The box is clearly not the same age as the statue itself, and the carving is rudimentary. The artist didn't even bother to engrave his name," he told them. "I could give you 1,500 jenny for it."

Their faces fell at the thought of the lost money.

"I'm not convinced," Hitomi shook her head. "How can be that sure that you aren't just lying to us?"

"Because I have experience in this kind of things," he said before smirking. "But, if you are not convinced yet, I can offer you to sell me the wood. It is actually very rare, I know someone who'd be willing to pay about 100,000 for it."

"Really?" Gon and Killua said at the same time.

"Now, here's what I'm gonna do for you today," he said. "If you agree to sell me these other two pieces for 420,000, I'll give you 80,000 for the wood. Trust me, you won't find anyone else who'll give you a deal like that."

They looked at each other.

"We need a minute to talk it over," Killua said.

"No rush, take your time," the man smiled kindly. "But while you're doing that, would you mind if I go check the age of this wood?"

"Go ahead," Gon smiled.

The man took the sculpture but, before he could even take a step, he was stopped by another guy with huge eyebrows.

"Don't let him fool you, kids," he said. "He was telling the truth about the value of the art and the doll, but he is lying to you about the statue. That box isn't worth 80,000, you are just trying to get your hands on what's inside the statue!"

"So, Captain Eyebrows..." Hitomi said. "Mind if I ask you who the hell are you?"

* * *

"Zepile?!" the three of them shouted in disbelief.

Killua stood up abruptly, slamming his hands on the table.

"We had to spend money because of you!" he shouted. "Why do we have to give you 20 percent of our profits?!"

"Don't be like that," Zepile said. "Consider it a consulting fee. I think I earned it."

"That doesn't sound so bad," Gon said. "He had been helping us a lot."

"Yeah, for like... _fifteen_ _minutes_ ," Hitomi facepalmed. "It kinda reminds me of Tonpa's fiasco back in the First Exam..."

"For once, Blondie-girl is right," Killua said, poking Gon in his forehead. "And you, don't be such a pushover. We're gonna need all the money we can get, _ever_ single jenny. The most we're gonna do is pick up the bill for his lunch."

"What? The bill?" Hitomi blinked. "We're gonna pay for Captain Eyebrows' lunch?"

Zepile just smirked.

"Just let me ask you this one question..." he said. "How'd you appraise those three pieces?"

"Appraise?" Gon asked.

"What's that?" Killua asked.

The man's face hit the table at their answer.

"You are serious?! You don't even know what means?!" he yelled. "Then how did you decide on what to buy?!"

"Man, my ears will start to bleed if you keep shouting like that..." Hitomi rubbed her sore ear. She then sighed and her expression became serious. "I think we have no more option than telling you. Listen, you see... um... I... uh..."

Unconsciously, Zepile leaned closer to hear the answer, in curiousity. She sighed and stared at him, with a solemn face.

"I'm psychic," she said in a deadpan tone.

 ** _SMACK!_**

"Why was that for?!" she yelled, putting a hand in the back of her head, angry.

"I'm sorry, I thought you had already seen it beforehand," Killua teased, "You're a psychic after all."

She just frowned at him, but her scowl disappeared a couple of seconds later and it replaced with a sheepishly smile.

* * *

The end of the chapter!

Well, I would thank some people:

 **JokeLover123** **:** That smile... again... *takes a couple of steps back* XD Thanks for reviewing! I hope you like this chapter as well :)

 **Mr. Kohen** **:** Thank you for leaving a review! This is this chapter but the Spiders won't appear until next chapter. I wish you liked this update despite of that :)

 **Kri:** Thanks for leaving a review! I'm glad you liked last chapter, and I hope you enjoyed this one as well!

 **SoulXHunter:** Thank you for reviewing! I wish you enjoyed this update like the last one :D

Silent Readers: Thanks for reading! Let's just hope you had fun as well ;)

See you all later!


	19. Tangled x Out of Character x Best Gift

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 19: Tangled In The Spider Web x Out of Character x The Best Gift Ever**

Hitomi still couldn't believe it. They had put the jewels in the auction and a man started to make false charges against them... well that was normal in a way. However, Gon's curiosity was stronger than himself and asked for more ways to falsify the object. Everyone in the room relaxed a little bit and laughed.

It kinda reminded her of the match between Hanzo and Gon.

"Actually, there's another foolproof trick," Zepile said long after the auction.

"Really?" Gon said, excitedly, as Zepile grabbed a ball. He opened it, revealing a little toy inside.

"Even the most experienced appraisers who know how to spot the cauterization trick have been fooled by this," he said, closing the ball once again and showing it to them. "Can you guess how it's done?"

"Were they left sealed?" Killua asked.

"Yeah, the fooled appraisers all bought it thinking that it had never been cauterized or opened," he said. "And they were right too. It had never been cauterized."

They all thought for a while.

"Such a troublesome _trick_..." Hitomi trailed off.

But her eyes opened in realization.

 _"Trick Tower... that's like then!"_ she shouted in her head. _"We escaped breaking the wall from a side!"_

She pointed at him with her finger.

"Making another hole," Hitomi said, proudly.

"Exactly. They made another hole away from the seal, replaced the jewelry inside with fakes and patched up the hole," he explained. "This method is known as ostomy."

That's when Gon's phone started ringing. As soon as he told his friends that the Spiders were nearby, they started running towards the agreed place.

"Hey, you guys!" Zepile shouted. "What about the auction?!"

"We'll leave it to you!" Gon shouted.

* * *

The girl did her best to keep her eyes in their natural purple coloration. She still could remember both of the guys who were in the table. She would never forget their faces. They had been in the Kuruta Clan massacre back then.

"So, how are we gonna get them?" Leorio asked.

"That's impossible," Killua said. "They're way out of our league."

"How can you say that now?!" Leorio exclaimed, standing up.

"Calm down, idiot," Hitomi said. "They'll see us."

Leorio, reluctantly, sat down once again.

"I really thought I could catch these guys," Gon said. "I guess I was being too optimistic."

"Me too," Killua said. "My dad warned me about them three years ago, so I thought I could take them on by now..."

"They are really that good?" Leorio asked.

"Well, imagine that there were two Hisoka sitting at that table."

Leorio paled at the thought, and all of sudden lost his will to capture them. Maybe, he got it totally right.

"Why do you think those two Spiders came to this place?" Killua asked.

"There can be only one explanation..." he replied, _too_ seriously. "They are on a date!"

"Eh, they are?!" Gon asked, blushing.

"Like hell!" Hitomi shouted at him, irritated.

"That may be what they want everyone to think, but they knew that couple sitting behind them were informants," Killua explained, a little annoyed as well. "They are paying careful attention to their surroundings. They'll sense us if we get any closer than we already are. Also, they're acting like they don't even know people are hunting them down."

"That's why they are called the Spiders. They're waiting for us to tangle in their web," she mumbled. "That's when they'll strike."

She was getting surprised of herself, though. Hitomi now chasing a Spider, like her brother. She had argued with Kurapika a lot of times before and now she was doing exactly the same.

Well, it was maybe in the blood.

The thought of it made her feel slightly sick.

A bad feeling snapped Hitomi out of her own thoughts and realized that the others had felt the same as her.

"They haven't spotted us, yet," Killua said.

"You sure? I'm not like you guys, remember?" Leorio said. "I can't use Zetsu or whatever you call it to hide my aura."

"This wouldn't be the right place to use it anyway, we'd be too conspicuous. Also, they're observing everyone in this plaza, looking for any expression, eye movement or behavior out of place," Killua said, before calmly eating a cherry of his cup. "So, just relax and try to act natural."

Killua's face fell when he saw Leorio and Gon's nervous smiles and Hitomi's fruitless attempts to hide her bright red eyes.

"Forget I said anything..." he murmured.

Hitomi took another long breath, calming herself down and making her eyes go violet once again. Killua, however, saw a soft scarlet color still sparkling on them.

"You should have bought contact lenses," he told her. "If the Spiders finds out about them, you'll be in great danger."

"I should have, but I forgot," Hitomi replied, still a little tense. "What do you want me to do? I can't go now to search for some."

"True..." he started to think.

Killua looked around to found Leorio and smirked, taking his sunglasses off.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Leorio yelled, a little annoyed.

"Lend me these for awhile," he said.

Hitomi blinked, before looking in surprise what Killua was doing. He put the glasses in her eyes and stared at her, with an approving smile.

"No one can see your eyes now," he said, "It will work for awhile."

"Do I have to wear this? They are way too... old fashioned," she pouted. "As I expected from such an old man..."

"You little-!" Leorio was about to yell.

He was cut off when they noticed the couple of Spiders standing up and starting to walk away from there. That's why Killua, Hitomi and Gon decided to follow them while Leorio agreed to get in touch with Zepile.

"Hey, you two don't happen to have any tracking experience, do you?" Killua asked.

"The navigators congratulated me for my tracking skills back at the Exam," Hitomi grinned, proudly.

"Good," the boy nodded, before looking at Gon. "And you?"

"Well, I tracked Hisoka during the Hunter Exam," he replied.

Hitomi froze. Had she heard him right?

"Wait, that was before you learned Nen... and let alone Zetsu!" she said, surprised. "And you are still alive..."

"Yeah..." he grinned sheepishly. "Hisoka even complimented me."

Speechless, Killua walked towards him and hit him in the head. Gon rubbed it and grimaced, in pain.

"Ouch!" he complained. "Why did you hit me?"

"No reason," Killua murmured. "I just felt like it."

"Um... I think that we should be going then..." Hitomi suggested, unsure of what to say.

Killua snapped of his surprise and nodded.

"Just remember to never enter their field of vision," he reminded them.

"I know, I know, I'm not that crazy to do that," she said, a little annoyed. "I don't want to suicide because I don't want to die. I'm just too young and pretty to die."

The three of them glared at her. Killua raised an eyebrow.

"What?" she said, defensively. "Just saying."

* * *

"They stopped," Hitomi noticed, looking at the couple`they had been following.

"Yeah," Killua said on the other side of the phone. "They're either waiting for someone, or they're trying to draw us out."

"Do you two think they've discovered we're following them?" Gon asked, worried.

"There's a fifty-fifty chance," the boy replied. "But they don't know where we are."

"Maybe they are waiting for us to attack and give away our position," Hitomi added.

"So, now what?" Gon asked.

"For now, let's just sit tight," Killua instructed. "Who knows, maybe they are just waiting for somebody."

A cell phone rang and unconsciously Hitomi tensed. She quickly realized that it was the man's phone.

"Boys, we have to hang up and focus on listening to them," she said.

"Okay," Killua agreed. "If either of us sees anything suspicious we don't even question it, just get out of here. The next time you two hear your phones, just run."

After agreeing, they hanged up. Being careful to not been seen, the girl leaned closer to the wall and peered out the window.

The man, Nobunaga, talked for a bit before directing his eyes to their direction. The girl paled and made a run for it to the door.

The exit, however, was blocked by a young man, whose name was Shalnark. He waved his hand at her.

"Hi," he smiled.

She stepped back and looked at him with gritted teeth. Shalnark, slowly, started to walk towards her while she panicked.

"Oh, hi there, Feitan," he waved someone in her back.

Hitomi frowned as soon as she saw the man behind her.

 _"I need a second,"_ she thought. _"Just a second to run away from them."_

She snapped her fingers at her sides, making the walls explode thanks to her Nen. Once they looked at the walls, she started to run.

But she felt a hold in her shoulder and something sharp and cold pressing against her neck. Hitomi was intelligent enough to know that was a sword.

She froze. Her heart was beating like mad, it looked like it was going to rip off her chest.

"Do something funny again and your head will roll," he whispered in her ear.

 _"Damn it,"_ she cursed in her head. _"These guys don't need a second to catch us."_

* * *

Hitomi was sure she was going to die today.

Reason one, she was kidnapped by the Genei Ryodan. Reason two, her strength was nowhere close to theirs. And reason three, they didn't care about Gon, Killua and her knowing where their hideout was, that meant that the Spiders were going to kill them all soon.

Pakunoda opened the door for them to see a lot of more Spiders, even Hisoka. She flinched at the sight of him, but she decided to play dumb and looked away.

 _"So Hisoka is a Spider, after all,"_ Killua noticed Hisoka. _"Well, he'd taken a liking to Gon and Hitomi, so there's a chance he might help us. I'm gonna pretend I don't know him..."_

"Ah!" Gon exclaimed at the sight of the magician.

The two other kids froze in their spot and Hisoka sweatdropped, still avoiding eye-contact.

"What is it?" Nobunaga asked. "Is there someone here that you do recognize?"

"Well, no... not really," Gon trailed off.

"Yeah, there is!" Killua exclaimed, finding something else to cover it. "It's that girl from before!"

Hitomi stared at Shizuku in recognition, who blinked. She had beaten her in arm wrestling before.

"Oh, I remember," Feitan said, looking at Hitomi. "She is the kid who arm wrestled."

"What do you mean?"

"You arm wrestled her a couple of days ago and lost," Franklin told her.

Hitomi opened her eyes slightly in amazement. That girl was a Spider.

 _"Oh my god, did I-?"_ she thought.

"At that time you were using your right hand," the man cut off the kid's thoughts.

"But why would I do that?" Shizuku said, surprised. "I'm obviously left handed!"

 _"Figures..."_ Hitomi's face fell, feeling a little disappointed.

Nobunaga looked at the little girl.

"Wow... Did you really beat Shizuku in arm wrestling?"

"Something like that..." she murmured.

"All right," he said. "I'm gonna take you on."

After a long time arm wrestling, Hitomi's hand started to hurt like hell. She had already been defeated several times, and that guy didn't give her a break.

And he even told her that he was around the seventh or eighth in the Spider's strength.

"The strongest arm wrestler among us was a guy known as Uvogin," he said. "But it seems he was killed by the chain dude."

"Yeah?" she smirked. She was grateful that she had Leorio's glasses on, because her sight was already red. "Why should I care?"

Her hand collided painfully with the table once again, like he wanted her to shut up.

"How many times do we have to tell you?!" Killua said, a little angered. "We don't know who he is!"

"Yeah, and even if we knew we wouldn't tell you!" Gon shouted, making Killua look at him like he was insane.

"You two!" Nobunaga warned them. "The next time you speak without permission, I'm gonna hurt you!"

Killua froze in his spot.

"I'd prefer to die before helping you!" Gon yelled again.

Machi grabbed him by his shoulder, in a warning way.

"Your friend is an enhancer, isn't he?" Nobunaga asked Hitomi.

"It's quite obvious, isn't it?" she replied.

"Uvo was your typical Enhancer too. A very simple-minded guy," he smirked. "But he was a real stickler about time. He used to slap Franklin and me around whenever we were late. I could never beat him in a fistfight."

Her hand slammed with the table again, making her wince and dropping her glasses in the process. She was lucky enough that her eyes were violet now, but in the other hand Leorio's glasses were out of her range.

She had to be careful with her emotions now.

"We've known each other since before the Genei Ryodan was started. I'm closer to him than anyone here. H-He never... would've..." tears began to roll down from the thief's cheeks. "He never, ever would've lost a fair fight! That must've ambushed him or something! I won't get away with it!"

The girl knew she had to calm down, but it was impossible for her to do so. The sight of the merciless killer crying over her dead friend made her a little angry.

Scratch that. _Really_ angry.

"I'll find him no matter how many people I have to kill!" he shouted. "This Chain-user obviously has a big grudge against us. All we really know is that he was recently hired by the Mafia's Nostrade family."

Killua's eyes opened in realization. He now knew who they were talking about.

"You might not know him personally, but maybe you've got some information on him," he pleaded. "Think about it real hard. Don't hold back, tell us everything you know right now!"

"Such an empathetic person we have here..." she murmured, pissed off.

Nen was being concentrated in the hand that held Nobunaga's. Gon and Killua tensed, knowing what was about to happen.

"So you're crying... Does that mean that you know what feels to lose someone? No. People around you can't kill your friends, but, oh yeah. _You_ can do that, of course. That's because you have feelings, that's it." she looked at him with her scarlet eyes on. "Then, how come you can be that cold-hearted when you take all those people's lives away?!"

In her outburst, she slammed Nobunaga's hand with the table. Her action obliged Feitan to keep her down by force.

"Hitomi!" the boys shouted.

Gon was immediately thrown in the floor by Machi, who pressed her foot against his back to refrain his movement.

Killua wanted to move too, but he felt Hisoka's card pressing against his neck.

"Move... and I'll kill you," Hisoka said.

The boy just froze in his spot, realizing that the magician was dead serious.

"Look at her eyes, she is of them," Feitan said, looking at Hitomi's bright red eyes. "I remember now, we killed some guys like that. So, is revenge what you want?"

"Why would I want your disgusting, dirty blood in my hands?!" she snapped.

Feitan narrowed his eyes, but before he could do anything, Nobunaga stopped him.

"Don't do it," he said. "You were going to break her arm, right?"

"First her fingers. I rip the nail off," he replied.

"I don't care what it was, just don't do it."

They started to fight and, after a bit, Franklin suggested to flip a coin like they were used to do in decisions like these. Nobunaga won, so Feitan got forced to let her go. Machi and Hisoka freed Gon and Killua as well.

"I checked them out thoroughly on the way over here," Pakunoda said, "As far as I can tell, neither one of them knows anything. They have no memory of the Chain-user."

"Well, if Pakunoda says so, then I guess that's how it is," Machi said.

Hitomi took Leorio's glasses and put them in her pockets, before getting closer to her friends.

"Guys, did they do anything to you on the ride over here?" Killua asked. Gon shook his head.

"Neither to me," Hitomi said. "She just asked me a few questions and put a hand over my shoulder-"

Her eyes opened in realization. She had said 'memory' recently so...

"That's it," she said, surprised at her own discovering. "Her Nen ability is to read memories just by touching a person."

"Makes sense!" Gon said, amazed as well.

Killua paled at the thought.

 _"If that's true, we're definitely in trouble!"_ he thought. _"I didn't know who the Chain-user was then but now I've figured it out. If she checks me again, we're doomed."_

Hitomi looked at Killua's troubled form and frowned deeply, aware that he knew something that she had no idea about.

* * *

The three of them were imprisoned now, sitting in front of Nobunaga, who was blocking the only way to get away from there.

Hitomi flinched at the sight of Killua's ankles. The sight of his flesh made her get the urge to puke.

"How the hell did you get that?" she asked.

Killua just looked at them and shrugged. Hitomi sighed, and ripped a part of the boy's shirt.

"What are you doing?" he asked, irritated.

"I won't waste my own clothes in your stupidity," she said, annoyed as well. She ripped the cloth again in two. "Also, it looks disgusting."

He stared at her in slight surprise, as she kneeled down next to his right foot and started to wrap it with a half of the cloth.

"As far as I knew, you didn't know how to bandage someone," he reminded her.

"I learned," she sighed, irritated.

"When?" he raised an eyebrow.

"It was... well... uh..." she started to think. "Well, who cares?"

Killua didn't take his eyes out of her as she bandaged his ankle. Absent-mindedly, he put a hand over the place where Hisoka had put the card.

 _"I couldn't move back there,"_ he thought, looking at Hitomi with narrowed eyes as she stated to wrap his other ankle. _"If they were going to kill Hitomi, could I have stopped them?"_

 _"You couldn't have. It would've been impossible,"_ Illumi's words echoed in Killua's head again and again. _"All it matters is if you can kill your opponent. If not, not try. Never fight a superior enemy, even if it cost you a friend."_

 _"Stop it!"_ he cried in his mind.

Hitomi let go of his foot as soon as he stood up. She raised an eyebrow at him, in confusion.

Killua wanted to attack Nobunaga, but something inside him refrained him to do so. Irritated, he punched the wall instead and sat down.

The three friends stayed in silence until night, and Nobunaga turned on some candles in order to see in the darkness.

"Hey guys, do you remember the last trick Zepile told us about?" Gon asked out of blue. "It wasn't autopsy or cauterization... it was something else."

"I don't remember," Killua said coldly.

"Yeah, neither do I," Hitomi replied as well.

Gon stayed quiet again, thinking further about it's name.

"Gon, Hitomi... I'll be the bait" Killua said, seriously. "While I distract him, you two make a run for it."

"What the hell...?" Hitomi trailed off.

Nobunaga, on the other hand, smirked knowing that they wouldn't be able to make it. Killua stood up and glared at him.

"I'll stop his first strike, even if it kills me," he said. "That should give you enough time to get outta here."

 ** _SMACK!_**

Not, this time it wasn't Hitomi. Gon was the one to punch Killua in his head. She, instead, watched how Killua grabbed his friend's shirt, pissed off.

"What the hell was that for?!" Killua yelled, angrily.

"Stop thinking only about yourself!" he yelled back. "You shouldn't talk about dying so lightly!"

"Are you serious?! You were talking like that earlier today when you said you'd rather die than helping the Spiders!"

"I can talk like that, but you can't!"

 ** _SLAP!_**

Hitomi, really pissed off, slapped both boys. Gon was surprised at her sudden outburst while a vein popped up in Killua's head due the fact that he had been hit two times in a row, on the same day.

"Stop it, you two! _I_ will be the one to kill you both!... But in other time," she shouted. "As much as I hate to say it, you won't die today. No one of us will. We're going to get out of here, together."

"Then, how do you think we are gonna do it, Miss Optimistic?!" Killua yelled.

"Using that thing in the head that you don't seem to have. It's called _brain_."

Nobunaga, however, started to laugh at the scene in front of him.

"Oh, I remember now!" Gon said, all of sudden. "Ostomy! It was ostomy!"

"That's right!" Hitomi exclaimed, getting Gon's idea.

"I remember, I remember!" Killua said, happy.

They turned serious again and glared at Nobunaga, who didn't understand the conversation at all. They activated their Nen and smirked.

"Are you sure?!" he asked. "You'll only get yourselves killed."

"I'm used to the danger," Hitomi joked, pointing at her friends. "You get in a lot of trouble around these two guys."

They ran to him and, before he could do anything, Hitomi broke the wall behind him, Killua at his right and Gon at his left.

Hitomi started to run, breaking as much walls as she could in the process. She tried to get away from Nobunaga, but he didn't expect to bump into someone.

Killua.

"I thought we had to split, idiot!" she yelled.

"You bumped into me!"

"Umm... guys?" a voice said behind them.

Great, Gon was here too and Nobunaga was getting closer. Hitomi sighed, not having more option but to put her hands around her mouth and focus Nen on them.

"What are you-?" Killua was about to say.

"Guys!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. "Are you there?!"

Killua and Gon gaped in amazement. They were sure to hear Hitomi's shouting from another place, far from where they were.

She raised her hands at her sides and they nodded at her.

"Yeah, over here!" Killua yelled.

"Me too!" Gon shouted as well. "It's time we take this guy down, okay?!"

And they started to run away, managing to flee from the Spider's web.

"Moron!" Killua stuck his tongue at the place where they had been. "I can't believe he actually fell for that!"

"But you know, I really would've liked to give him a beating!" Gon said.

"Forget it, there's no way. He would've killed the three of us before we could even touch him! We only know the basics of Nen, we wouldn't stand a chance," Killua said, before turning to the girl. "By the way, what was that?"

"Se-cre-t~!" she replied, irritating him.

Gon, on the other hand, grinned.

"Now you two are back to talking like the Killua and the Hitomi I know," he said. "You know, my job is to do say all the crazy stuff, Killua's job is to keep me cool and Hitomi's is joking around to enlighten the mood! That's what I need you two for!"

"Hey, all our jobs focus on you?" Hitomi murmured, a little annoyed. "Also, how come I look more like a clown than anything else?"

"Whatever you say..." Killua said to Gon, irritated as well.

They ran for a little more, talking more about the Genei Ryodan.

"Their Nen abilities are way beyond us, somehow we have to figure out how to compete at their level." Killua continued. "The quickest and easiest way to find out would be to ask Kurapika."

Hitomi stopped in her tracks, still thinking. Now all made sense... the guy who was hired by the Nostrade Family... The one who wanted revenge... The guy of the chain...

The one who the Spiders wanted to kill had been Kurapika all along.

The other two boys stopped as well. Gon was confused, but stayed quiet.

"You two hadn't figured that out yet?" Killua sighed.

"Kurapika is the Chain-user," she said. "So, that means he killed a member of the Genei Ryodan."

"Yeah, sounds like that."

Hitomi just couldn't believe it, Kurapika had killed someone. She still remembered how scared - even if he didn't want to admit it - he was at the thought of taking someone's life. The Fourth Exam, Trick Tower, was a clear example of it.

"Right now, Kurapika is the only one who knows how to help us," Gon said.

And Hitomi thought that, maybe, her brother needed them too.

"I'll call him," she declared.

* * *

"As I expected," Hitomi sighed, clicking the off button of her cell phone. "I keep getting a busy signal."

They heard a sudden explosion, and turned around to see smoke and lights come for a faraway place. It was like a war.

The three stared at it for a while, before jumping into the same conclusion.

"The Spiders!" they exclaimed at the same time.

Gon then called Leorio and agreed to meet. Not long after that, they arrived to the place. There, Hitomi called her brother once again.

"Hello," Kurapika's polite voice sounded through the phone.

"Oh my god, this is not a recording machine, is it?" Hitomi joked, smiling widely. "You are _talking_ to me? I mean, for _real_?"

"Hitomi!" he said, surprised.

"The one and only," she smirked. "Well, I-"

"Sorry, I'm busy," he replied, cutting her off. "I'll call you back when I can."

"You said the same thing a _long_ time ago!" she yelled, angrily. "Like hell I'm going to believe you!"

Gon, however, took the phone out of her hands.

"Wait a minute, Kurapika! Just one minute, okay? We need to tell you one thing," he said quickly. "Hitomi, Killua and me met the Genei Ryodan… Well, actually, they kinda caught us."

"What were you three thinking?!" he yelled, making both kids flinch at the loud sound. "Don't you know how dangerous they are?!"

Killua asked Gon the phone and he gave it to him. Hitomi got closer to it, in order to hear as well.

"We know now. We didn't realize it until we saw them in person," he admitted. "That's when we knew we weren't strong enough to take them on. And that's why we need your help, Kurapika."

"And maybe we can help you out too!" Gon shouted.

"This isn't a game. I won't assist in your suicide," he replied.

"You aren't the one to talk!" Hitomi scoffed. "Working like a lone wolf will kill you eventually."

Kurapika didn't talk, annoying the girl a little.

"You don't wanna know where their hideout is?" Killua suggested.

"I have my own sources," he replied.

"We also found out about the abilities of each member."

"Forget it! Just stay away from them! Understand?!"

Killua was getting a little irritated too.

"You killed one of them, and they call you the Chain-user, right? They are dead set on finding you," he said, and Kurapika stayed in silence, making Killua snap. "Even if you don't consider us friends or equals, I'm still gonna make you help us out!"

Hitomi sighed, kindly taking the phone out of the boy's hands and pressing it against her ear.

"Listen, Kurapika. One of them cried in front of us because his dead friend, and it just made me angrier. It made me think about all the lives they had taken, and not only our clan's," she said, quietly. "And, for once in my life, I want to assist you in suicide. We _all_ wanna stop these guys."

Kurapika stayed in silence once again. Pissed off, Leorio took the phone out of her hands.

"Kurapika-!"

"I'll call you back later."

And after that, he hung up. They looked at each other and decided to do one last thing for the boy who wanted to do all by himself.

 _"We'll be waiting in Dayroad Park._

 _Hitomi, Gon and Killua."_

Hitomi sent the text and sighed loudly. Her eyes stared at the screen for a little, before noticing something she hadn't realized.

"September 4th…" she murmured.

"Yeah, that's today," Killua replied. "What with that?"

"N-Nothing, it's nothing," Hitomi blushed a little, looking away.

"You don't wanna tell us?" Gon pouted. "Come on!"

Leorio started to poke her forehead, teasing and annoying her.

"Don't be mean," he said. "Don't keep things to yourself like your brother! Come, tell us!"

"Tomorrow is September 5th!" Hitomi yelled, a little embarrassed. "M-My birthday."

They all blinked.

"Is that so?" Gon said, happily. "Happy birthday then!"

"It's tomorrow, idiot!" she shouted.

* * *

Hitomi woke up next morning to find no one on her room. It was strange for her, she had never oversleep in all her life.

She decided to not think over it again and dressed up before grabbing her cell phone. She was surprised to see a new text of Kurapika.

 _"The Spiders are dead."_

Hitomi had to look at it twice, before understanding. How come they are all of them dead? There was no way! Who did-?

She smiled bitterly. She thought it was better not to worry about it.

She, instead, was worrying over other different thing, Kurapika had not said if he was going to come or not. Sometimes, her insensitiveness pissed her off.

"He never asked my help…" she squeezed the phone tightly. "Maybe, that's because I'm weak."

Weak, useless to him. The thought of it made rage start to slowly burn within her consuming her from inside. Unable to keep them anymore, tears poured out of her eyes.

And now she felt stupid for crying over something like this. But she just couldn't help it.

"Hey, Dummy, are you still sleeping?" she heard Killua's voice from the door.

She flinched. Without knowing what to do, she grabbed the blankets of her bed and covered herself with them. She then resisted the urge to smack herself at her idiotic reaction.

Hitomi heard Killua's steps getting closer and she shut her eyes tightly.

"What are you doing?" the boy raised his eyebrow.

"Well, I _was_ sleeping, until you come in," she lied, her voice broke a little in the last part.

Killua didn't say anything for a bit.

"Hitomi," he called.

"Hm?"

"You suck at lying."

She flinched again before noticing the boy pulling over the covers to make eye contact. She sighed, before sitting up. He stared at her for a bit, a little surprised. He had never imagined Hitomi crying like this before.

"So," he started, looking away. "What happens?"

"Nothing," she replied. "Everything is just _okay._ "

"Yeah, that explains the tears in your eyes," he replied, sarcastically.

"Tears of joy?" she suggested. "Today is a wonderful day…"

He glared at Hitomi.

"Okay, okay, maybe it's not it…" she sighed loudly. "Well… I doesn't matter."

"It does," he replied.

She glared back.

"It's not your business," she muttered.

"It is."

"I don't wanna talk about it."

"But _I_ do."

She gritted her teeth, pissed off.

"What do you want me to tell you?!" Hitomi snapped. "That I feel weak and useless around others?! That I feel just stupid?! That I'm worried about not seeing my brother anymore?!"

She then looked away, realizing what she had done. Killua's gaze, however, became softer after blinking twice. He sighed, sitting down next to the girl.

"You're right in one thing, though, you're stupid," he said.

"Oh, really?" her eyebrow twitched. "Thanks a lot."

"You are not that weak and useless," he said flushing a bit, surprising her. "You had help us all in a lot of things until now, including Kurapika."

"Of course," she said, sarcastically. "Then, why do you think my brother won't come?"

"He will," he smiled kindly.

Hitomi smiled as well, before poking his cheek.

"That's a little out of character, but thanks anyway," she teased.

"Yeah, because you are so _on_ character…" he rolled his eyes, in sarcasm, before grabbing something out from his pocket. "Oh, right, I had to give you this."

Hitomi opened the little box and saw a double-wrapped iron bracelet. She grabbed it and noticed it made a soft, metallic sound when the bracelets clashed with each other.

"I noticed that your ability is to control sound," he explained. "It can help you in battle."

She looked at them for a little more before smiling.

"Can I do something more out of my character?" she smirked. "Thank you."

Killua was taken by surprise when a pair of arms wrapped around his neck. He froze there, blushing in embarrassment.

"Oh my, you're blushing!" she teased. "So shy and cute~"

"Shut up, I'm not!"

* * *

Hitomi was eating the ice-cream that Leorio had bought for them for her birthday, when she noticed something else. In front of them, there was someone standing.

In felt so unreal. She blinked a few times before grinning. There was Kurapika. Kurapika had read her message.

"You idiot!" she yelled, accidentally spitting some ice-cream in Killua's face and dropping the rest on Gon's head.

She ran to him.

 ** _SLAP!_**

Kurapika was surprised, but didn't react at his sister's hit. He knew that, in a way, he kind of deserved it.

She wanted to say something else, but she just sighed and smiled softly. Her eyes softened at the sight of him, alive, and well.

Hitomi hugged him tightly instead. She had been so afraid before and now that he was in front of her, she wasn't going to let him go away that easily.

"Hitomi, I..." he trailed off. "I'm sorry I didn't bought you a gift of something."

"It doesn't matter," she smiled. "You're here. That's the best gift I could've ever get."

She released her brother, not letting go of her grin yet.

However her sight got blocked for a huge mass in her eyes. She turned around to see Killua's cat mode and Gon, who had hit her with ice cream.

Kurapika blinked, seeing a vein pulsating with anger on his sister's head, before she started to fight with them. He stared for a while at the cloud of dust that the three kids were doing while fighting.

Leorio then showed up, raising his hand in greeting. However, he was attacked with ice-cream as well. Pissed off, he started to chase them.

The Kuruta boy softened his gaze and released a sigh. Without being able to hold it anymore, Kurapika released a soft, gentle laugh.

Hitomi blinked at him, before smiling as well. She ran to him and hit him with some ice-cream too.

"Hitomi..." he scolded, in a playfully tone, before taking a bit of the cream the little one had in her head and starting to chase her as well.

For once in awhile, Hitomi was happy. Seeing her brother's smile again was the best gift ever. She couldn't ask for more.

* * *

Sorry again for the lame chapter!

 **JokeLover123:** We all love Killua XD Well, thanks for reviewing! I wish you had fun this time here :)

 **SoulXHunter:** Thank you for leaving a review :) I hope you liked this chapter as well!

 **Silent Readers out there:** Thanks for paying a visit here! Let's hope you enjoyed it :)

See you all later!


	20. Fake Death x Helping x I'll Protect You

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 20: Fake Death x Helping Kurapika x I'll Protect You**

The girl blinked at her brother's words.

"A contract and restrictions?" Gon asked.

"In other words, it's a condition with limitation?" Leorio said.

Kurapika nodded.

"Nen is an ability heavily influenced by one's spirit. One's resolution can increase its strength," he explained, conjuring his chain. "However, there's a risky setback. Most of my Nen abilities come from my oath to defeat the Spiders. For this purpose, a rule has been set. If I attack anyone other than the Spiders with my chains then I will lose my life."

The three others opened their eyes in surprise.

"There's a Nen blade pierced into my heart," he explained. "My abilities were born from hatred. It's a power that is useless against anyone but the Spiders."

Hitomi just stared at him in disbelief.

"I'm telling you this for your own sake," he continued. "Don't spread this to anyone else."

"Why...?" Killua mumbled, looking troubled, before standing up and shouting. "Why did you tell us something so important?!"

"Yes, you do have a point. Why did I?" he murmured. "Maybe I've let my guard down... Now that their leader is dead."

"We are still in trouble! They are not all dead. One of the survivors has the ability to read memories!" he spoke. "It's a power that can get the desired information simply through physical contact. Even if we don't have the intention of exposing it, she can read our memories. If they were to find out your secret, you'd lose all chances of victory!"

"Killua is right," Hitomi nodded. "Back then, we didn't know that you, Kurapika, were the Chain-user. But if she tries to touch us again, you're as good as dead."

"You'd be safe as long as you don't go near them!" Leorio exclaimed. "And they don't know how you and Kurapika are connected, do they?"

They nodded, realizing that he was right.

"I've been in contact with Hisoka," Kurapika said, in everyone's surprise. "He knows that I'm the Chain-user. We had an alliance, but now that his target, their leader, is dead I'm not sure what his next move will be."

"What should we do then?" Gon asked.

"We should go after them!" Killua said. "Now that we know Kurapika's secret we can't be on the defensive side! There's no time to lose! We have to act now!"

"You're right, that woman may be a threat, but their leader is dead," Kurapika said, calmly. "Now, I should concentrate on reclaiming the eyes of my clan. Just like Hitomi does."

"About time," Hitomi smirked at his comment, feeling happy that he could be able to forget that stupid feeling of venegance.

Kurapika's phone rang and he read some text. He paled and his eyes sparkled a bit in scarlet, before standing up and walking away quickly.

"Hey, wait up!" Hitomi started to follow him, like the others. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

"It was Hisoka, wasn't it?" Killua asked.

Kurapika stopped in his tracks, showing that he was right.

"What'd he say?" Gon asked, worried.

"The corpses were fake," he said, in a low voice.

They gaped in disbelief.

"Is such a thing possible?" Leorio exclaimed in surprise.

"Now that I'm thinking about that, it is," Hitomi nodded, remembering her battle with Kastro. "You can use Nen to create a double of yourself."

"That's true, a Conjuration-type could definitely have abilities like that," Kurapika said. "Dammit. Why didn't I think of this possibility before?!"

His phone rang once again and he picked up. He talked for awhile with someone called Senritsu, before hanging up.

"It seems that the Community has given up the pursuit on the Ryodan," he told them. "The Ryodan are from Ryuusei."

Hitomi jumped in her spot.

 _"That's bad."_

* * *

"First, someone needs to stake out their hideout and relay information back," Kurapika instructed.

"I'll go," Killua and Hitomi said at the same time.

They glared at each other.

"I said I'll be the one to go!" Killua said.

"You? Yeah, right," she rolled her eyes. "You'll be dead before returning here!"

"You are not the one to talk!" he said, annoyed. "Besides, an idiot like you will get lost!"

"Lost?" she scoffed, not believing it. "My sense of direction is perfect, thank you very much!"

Kurapika shook his head.

"I think it will better for you two to go together," he said. "It'll be safer."

The two kids glared each other, again, and looked away.

"I also need a driver," Kurapika continued. "Leorio, can you do it?"

"Eh?" he said, surprised, before calming down. "Sure."

"Kurapika, what about me?" Gon asked.

"You'll create a diversion to get their attention," he explained. "Keep them distracted for at least half second. Better yet, one whole second."

Hitomi and Killua gaped in surprise.

"That's a very dangerous mission! He'd have to be in direct conflict with them again!" Killua shouted. "Wouldn't be better if either Hitomi or me went with him?"

"It's logical to think in that way, but it's also more dangerous than going alone," Kurapika explained. "One person can run away easier than two, because they will unconsciously try to escape together. That's why Gon would be safer going by his own."

The girl sighed, knowing that he was right.

"Umm... say, Kurapika," Gon spoke. "Could you pierce me with your Nen blade too?"

"And can you make also a copy for me?" Hitomi asked. "Just in case."

"You two, weren't you listening?" Leorio asked. "If he was to attack anyone other than the Ryodan, Kurapika would die!"

"Then, how did he manage to pierce his own heart?" Hitomi smirked and Gon nodded.

They jumped in their seats, but saw her point. Kurapika stayed silent for a while.

"From here on, my answer will greatly increase the risk to me," he said. Leorio understood almost immediately, so he stood up.

"Killua," he called.

Killua glanced at his two friends and sighed, before standing up as well. Both of them walked away, letting the other three alone.

Kurapika conjured the chain and showed it to them.

"To sum it up, yes, I can use it on both of you," he explained, before opening his palm. "Each of my five chains have a different function. Among those, there are two of which I use to fight the Ryodan."

They nodded. Kurapika showed the chain of his middle finger.

"This one is called the Chain Jail. It restrains the opponent and forces them into Zetsu. It's an ability I developed to capture the Ryodan. When I fight them, I use this first to restrain them," he said, before taking the little finger's one, "And this is called the Judgment Chain. I stab the target's heart with this dagger and declare a binding rule. Breaking this rule would result in death."

"That's why you can die if you use them in someone who's not a Spider," Hitomi said.

Kurapika nodded at her.

"This chain has one special requirement," Kurapika closed his eyes and opened them, now scarlet. "I can only use it while my eyes are scarlet."

Speechless, Hitomi stood up from her seat and pointed at him. Her mouth opened and closed, but no sound came from it.

"You can turn them on yourself?" Gon asked in surprise.

"I can now. It takes time for them to turn scarlet though," he replied. His sister sighed, before sitting down once again, "This condition was necessary because of my abilities. I'm a Conjurer, but materializing the dagger, controlling it and forcing rules upon others are Manipulation and Emission abilities."

"But you shouldn't be able to use those types of abilities," the boy said.

"Once the conjured chain leaves my hands, it would become too weak to be useful. The chain on my pinky solved the problem for the Specialization department," he explained. "When my eyes turn scarlet, I become a Specialist and all the abilities I have learned can be used at 100 percent of their strength."

"God, I really should think twice next time before pissing him off..." she thought.

Hitomi sighed, before smirking.

"So, in short, you can stab us with the dagger too," she said. "Well? I'm tired of waiting."

Gon nodded, determined as well. That's when Leorio and Killua appeared behind Kurapika.

"Can you make four of those at once?" the kid asked.

"You can cancel the rule after the mission is complete, right?" Leorio asked. "We decided we should be in the same boat."

"We're all part of the plan."

The entire room stayed on silence, waiting for Kurapika's anwer. He however, chuckled softly at his friends' actions.

"It certainly is possible, but all four of you are making one mistake," he said. "I've never considered using the chain on any of you."

"But if we were to be captured by Pakunoda again-" Gon trailed off.

"Then my abilities will be revealed," he nodded. "So, what kind of rule would it have to be? 'Don't let Pakunoda touch you under any circumstance'? Also, if you look at it in another way, that would throw away a chance to counterattack."

"But Pakunoda may not read our memories as soon as she touches us!" Hitomi shouted. "That's why, brother. If I die before she can examine me, she won't get the memory. So, please..."

Kurapika stared at her for a few seconds, before laughing slightly. Her eyebrow twitched in annoyment.

"What's so funny?" she asked, irritated.

"Do you think I would be that heartless to let you all die by my chains for my sake?" he smiled, kindly.

She pouted, before looking away.

"Then why are you telling us all of this when it only increases the risk to you?" Gon said.

"I wanted to repay all of you for your dedication," Kurapika replied. "Even if they find out my secret through you, I won't have any regrets."

"Repay?" Hitomi raised an eyebrow. "If you mean the minutes of my phone that I had wasted trying to make sure you were alive, you should start now. I think that we could buy Greed Island with all of them..."

Kurapika smiled again, making a chill run through her back.

 _"He is smiling... again. This is the first time I see him smiling that much..."_ she smiled nervously. _"Something bad is going to happen."_

"It's not fair, Kurapika," Gon complained. "The pressure of letting down a friend is worse than risking my life."

"That's what I was hoping," he smiled once again. Gon laughed as well.

 _"It's not funny..."_ Killua thought.

"That's it!" Hitomi shouted, pointing at him. "Now you are really scaring me!"

Kurapika laughed once again. After a bit, they looked at her and Killua, as if they were waiting for them to do something.

"Okay, I think we should be going, Hitomi," Killua said. "No point in wasting time, right?"

"Okay," she started to run. "Let's babysitting begin!"

"Hey!" he ran after her, irritated. "What was that supposed to mean?"

* * *

"First, I'm forced to go with you. Then, it starts to rain above our heads..." Hitomi complained. "And now there are fifty identical buildings?! I have the feeling that today it's not my day..."

"Stop being that fussy," Killua sighed, irritated. "And shut up, you're annoying."

"Thanks for that!" she grinned. "I think you know already that being annoying is one of my specialities!"

Killua just facepalmed. Hitomi laughed a bit, before both turned serious again.

"We shouldn't go ahead, this is the work of a Nen user," he told her.

"A Conjurer, and maybe the one who made the fake corpses as well," Hitomi nodded. "Now you call Kurapika."

"Geez, you are bossy," he complained, taking out his cell phone. "Why don't _you_ call him?"

"Because I'm plain lazy."

Killua glared at her, before sighing. He dialed the number and pressed the phone against his ear. After a few rings, Kurapika picked up and he told him about the buildings.

"It's probably the work of a Conjurer," Kurapika said.

"Yeah, we think that too," Hitomi answered, getting closer to the phone. "Also, we can assume they are some kind of trap."

"But it's also proof that their base is still here," Killua added. "The problem is, now there are too many areas we can't see!"

"But you're more likely to run into them if you wander around," Kurapika said.

"Yeah, we'd never try to do anything like that," she replied, and he nodded.

"However, I keep wondering what I'll do if I hear their voices..." Killua murmbled. "My heart is already beating like mad."

Hitomi looked at him, surprised at that statement.

Kurapika thought over his words as well, in another way only he could understand. He then told them to stay there and wait for five minutes. After that, he hanged up.

The boy then noticed her staring at him with a huge grin. His eyebrow twitched, annoyed, as he felt her gaze in him.

"What?" he asked, irritated.

"Oh my! I didn't know you were scared!" she teased, poking his cheek. "You're so cute~!"

"Who is scared...?!" he murmured, annoyed. He flushed a bit due his embarrassment.

Hitomi let go of his cheek and grinned slightly. Killua just stared at the girl, waiting for her to talk in confusion.

"Don't worry, Killua, I'll protect you no matter what," she smiled warmly.

"Look who is talking..." he sighed, annoyed.

"Wha-?" she whinned. "I was dead serious about that-!"

"Hitomi," Killua looked at her, with a blank expession. "You'll never be a serious person, you know."

She was about to complain, but Kurapika called her. He told them that a colleague of his was going to help them, so they had to wait once again.

And her phone then rang again, this time it was an unknown number. However, she picked up.

"Are you two Hitomi-chan and Killua-kun?" a female voice asked.

"Yeah. Who are you?" she replied.

"I work with Kurapika. Can you look to your left?" she asked, making both kids turn around to see a person standing meters far away from them. "Hang up the phone and whisper something for me to do."

Hitomi did as she was told and hang up the call.

"Raise your right hand," Killua said so softly that Hitomi, who was beside him, couldn't nearly hear.

"You don't have to do as she said, that literally," the girl sighed. "I bet the poor woman couldn't even hear that you talked..."

The girl then noticed that boy wasn't paying attention to her, instead he was looking at the woman with a surprised expression. She looked at her and gaped in disbelief.

The woman was raising her right hand, as the boy told her to.

"What an amazing Hell's Ear!" Killua exclaimed while Hitomi nodded, amused.

* * *

Killua tensed when he heard steps coming closer to them. Hitomi sighed, with her arms still crossed behind her head.

"You don't have to worry, it's Senritsu," she assured.

"We can't be completely sure," he replied, "We are after the Spiders after all."

"Well, I think that being always on guard is a feline thing, isn't it, kitten?"

The boy glared at her for a bit, before climbing on the roof. He looked at her, with an eyebrow raised.

"I got it, I got it..." she sighed, before lazily doing the same as him.

Not a heartbeat later, the door opened. The person, Senritsu, took a step and smiled kindly.

"I understand," she said. "You two don't have to hide. Please come out."

Hitomi gave the boy and 'I-told-you-so' look, before jumping down the roof. Little after, Killua did the same, but in a softer way.

Senritsu got surprised by that.

"What amazing skill you have!" she said, looking at the boy. She then smiled at both kids. "Pleased to meet you, Killua-kun, Hitomi-chan."

Hitomi smiled politely, but then noticed Killua staring at the girl. That annoyed her just a little bit.

 _ **SMACK!**_

"Ouch!" Killua complained, glaring angrily at her. "It hurts, you know?"

"It's not polite to stare," Hitomi joked. "Also, you shouldn't judge people skills based only on their appearance."

Senritsu smiled warmly to them. "Don't worry," she just assured.

The kids watched the woman walk closer to the edge of the building. She closed her eyes and put her hands around her ears, as she was trying to hear further.

"I cannot hear the conversation well due to the rain," she told them. "From the footsteps, there should be five or six of them. There's also a woman among them. And they're headed in a direction away from us."

"Just... wow," Hitomi didn't know what to say.

"Amazing!" Killua exclaimed. "I couldn't hear anything at all."

"Well, if you point it out like that, it's not that impressive," Hitomi teased. "You are as deaf as an old man, Whitey."

Killua just glared at her but didn't say anything else, because he knew that it wasn't the appropriate time for that.

"Well then, let's go," Senritsu said. "We have to follow them without getting noticed, don't we?"

They smirked and nodded at her. Not long after that, the two kids were running through the wet streets, following Senritsu.

"Seems like Kurapika is out of ideas," the Musical Hunter said. "For him to actually ask for my help."

"Yeah, that's true," Hitomi nodded, still a little annoyed at her brother. "He always want to handle _everything_ by himself."

"Does Kurapika have any other friends?" Killua asked.

"There are another two," she replied. "Though it's not very stable."

Hitomi was a glad at hearing that fact, but she still couldn't believe that Kurapika had actually made a friend. She noticed Senritsu eyeing at Killua with curiosity.

"You..." she said. "Can it be that you are an assassin?"

"I used to be," he replied. "How do you know?"

"From your footsteps."

Killua stared at her in confusion while Hitomi snapped her fingers in realization.

"If even Senritsu can't nearly hear you, that could mean that your footsteps are very close to the point Estinto," Hitomi explained. "A term used for a type of sound that describes the point where the sound is almost impossible to hear."

"Well, that's it," Senritsu smiled. "You are pretty intelligent."

The boy, however, raised an eyebrow at his friend, annoying her a little bit.

"It's called _reading_ , you should try it sometime," Hitomi said. "But only if your non-existent brain allows you to do such a difficult task."

"I know how to read, thank you very much," Killua replied, irritated.

The woman, on the other hand, looked at them both for a couple of minutes.

"I finally understand the reason why Kurapika would rely on your help," she said, before stopping abruptly when she heard something. "Turn at the corner of this road and those guys should be about 100 meters from here."

"You can distinguish theirs from all the other footsteps?" Killua asked.

"I'm used to it. Each person's is slightly different from one another."

"I can see why my brother relies in your help too," Hitomi smirked. "Well, I think I should confirm the exact location of the Spiders."

"I'm going with you," Killua said.

They both climbed a building and jumped a few roofs. After a while, they spotted them so they stayed quiet to not be found.

"Oh, there's that woman," Hitomi murmured. "But, seriously, can't she do something with that nose? It's almost as big as her face..."

"It's not the time for this, idiot," he raised an eyebrow. "Just call Gon."

"Yeah, yeah," she sighed, taking her cell phone out of her pocket and pressing it against her ear. "It seems like you stopped killing people, but you still love to kill the fun... You, fun killer..."

Killua glared at her. Hitomi shrugged.

"Hello?" Gon picked up.

"Hi, Puppy-boy, what's up?" Hitomi grinned. "I'm here with the kitten."

Killua put his ear closer to the phone to hear as well. The girl felt felt his hair tips brushing with her cheeks and resisted the urge to growl while remembering her 'staring time' days ago.

 _"Why the hell am I thinking about this now?"_ she blushed slightly, a little annoyed with herself.

"That woman is over there," Killua spoke. "But she is with her comrades, they are in a group of six... and that ponytailed guy is there too."

"I can also see... Glasses-girl, Scary-girl... uh... the male version of the ghost of The Ring?" she looked at them, under Killua's glare. "Okay, okay, I'm getting serious... umm... There's another guy we had never seen... Maybe he is the leader."

The other side of the phone was quiet all of sudden.

"What kind of guy is he?" Gon asked.

"Black wind-breaker with a reversed cross on the back," Killua said. "He has black hair but, with his back towards us, we can't see his face. There's absolutely no opening in his posture. I'm too afraid of his anterior appearance to catch a closer look. He gives off a feeling of anticipation."

"As long as they move as a group, we can't attack," Hitomi added.

Kurapika asked Gon for the phone and the boy gave it to him. Kurapika opened a map.

"What's your current location?" he asked.

"Honchirenta Road, in front of Motoba Building," she said, looking around. "Heading west on foot."

"There's a subway station," he said, finding the spot in where they were. "Are they planning to take the subway?"

"If it's like that, I think we can get on the same one with them," the girl offered.

"Yeah," Killua nodded. "Maybe we can if there happens to be lots of people around."

"Then it's decided. Thank you."

"Understood," they said at the same time, before Hitomi pressed the off button.

After a bit, they met with Senritsu and told her the whole plan. They arrived at the place and found out that they were so lucky to be in a rush hour.

Senritsu was in the same car as the Spiders, and the kids were in another. Killua called Kurapika and told him that they were already following them.

 _"I wonder why doesn't anybody find them a little weird..."_ Hitomi thought. _"I would freak out if someone like them sat down next to me..."_

Hitomi's phone rang and then realized that it was Senritsu's signal. They jumped out the subway and ran, following the Ryodan.

"They are on the move," Killua informed Kurapika, "They got off at the Rippai Station. Heading towards the Saruma Department Store."

"This is bad," Kurapika said. "That's the direction of the hotel."

* * *

"Hey," Hitomi said once Kurapika picked up, with Killua closely hearing the conversation. "Killua, Senritsu and I are in front of the station right now. The Spider is hurrying towards the west."

"I know," he replied. "I'm chasing them right now."

Hitomi blinked a few times while Killua gaped in disbelief.

"Wait... you are _what?!_ " she yelled at him.

"You're definitely going to be discovered!" Killua shouted as well. "Stop it right now!"

Hitomi stayed in silence for a while, and looked at her phone. Anger and worry were slowly swallowing her sanity when the terrible scenery repeated again and again in her mind.

Kurapika was going to get killed.

"He hung me up..." she murmured, curling her fists in anger. "That idiot..."

Instantly, Killua called Leorio. He told him that Gon had gone with him too, a fact that didn't help the girl in her current condition.

"That's it!" she yelled, her eyes already red, before starting to run. "I'm off!"

"Wait up!" Killua chased after her. "Why is everyone acting on their own?!"

Senritsu did the same too.

* * *

Hitomi hid herself, close to Killua and Senritsu. Meters ahead, they knew, were Kurapika and Gon hidden as well.

There were also the Spiders. They were looking at an empty space, waiting for somebody to come out.

Killua and Hitomi paled at the sight of Gon standing up, who probably was just trying to cover Kurapika up.

"I'm very sorry!" he held his hands up, in defense. "I won't follow you anymore, so please forgive me!"

They stayed quiet for a bit.

"The other one in the alley, come out!" Machi said.

Hitomi flinched due the finding of her brother. She wanted to move, but Killua stood up first. A little angry, she grabbed his shoulder.

"Don't stop me, I'm going," he whispered.

"Now way," she said. " _I'm_ the one going."

"For what? Showing your beautifully red-colored eyes?" Killua said, sarcastically.

"Yeah," she snapped, but still in a soft voice. "I will be the one going and I'm not going to-"

She was cut off by a pression in her right cheek. The thought of Killua kissing her was enough to cloud her mind and blush in embarrassment.

Killua pulled back and got closer to her ear. "That's called revenge," he grinned. "The same you did to me back at Heavens Arena."

And when Hitomi realized what was happening, the boy was already standing at a side of Gon. In front of the Genei Ryodan.

 _"That tricky bastard..." h_ er eyebrow twitched in annoyment.

"What do you want?" Machi asked. "There's no more reward money from the Mafia on our heads."

"Huh, really?" Killua pretended to be surprised. "Why?"

Senritsu looked at the girl in worry, her heartbeat was getting quicklier and more impatient. Her eyes weren't another story, they shone in the brightest tone of scarlet.

Even the thought of jumping there crossed Hitomi's mind.

 _"I have to calm down..."_ she sighed, closing her eyes and doing her best to keep them violet. _"I wasn't caught, so I don't have to_ get _myself caught. It would be in vain. Even if I don't like it, the best option is to let them get kidnapped and think how to save them after that."_

Machi put her threads around their hands, to avoid them from running away. After that, they started to walk away.

Kurapika met with both girls and Hitomi resisted the urge to smack her brother because of his recklessness. It was, after all, what put them in that situation.

"We can't get any closer to them," Senritsu said. "Those guys have already raised their defense barrier and are even more alert that they were before."

"Dammit!" Kurapika growled.

"Anxiety is forbidden, Kurapika!" she told him, with a serious tone of voice.

"I know that!"

"You don't know it at all! They are in danger right now, because of your senseless pursuit!" she shouted. "Do you know why they put themselves at risk of being captured? If you were discovered here, there'd be no one who can stop the Ryodan!"

"She is right, so now, calm down!" Hitomi instructed him, before directing to the woman. "Now tell me, Senritsu, can you overhear the conversation and tell us where they all heading now?"

She nodded and they started to walk closely behind them. After a while, they found out that they were being taken to the Beichitaku Hotel.

"Good, the place we agreed before, so Killua and Gon know that we will fight. We have to prepare a trap for the Spiders," Hitomi said. "Maybe... Can we plan a blackout or something like that?"

"We can," Kurapika nodded. "But we have to find a way for them to know about it beforehand."

"About that, leave it to me," she smirked. "First of all, we have to arrive to the hotel before them. They are walking slowly, so we have to take advantage of that."

Hitomi was sure. Her plan would work without fail.

* * *

Now they were all in the car with Leorio, heading towards the Beichitaku Hotel. In the way, Hitomi decided that she could tell the plan she had in mind.

"We need someone that the Ryodan doesn't know, and that leaves only you, Leorio," she said and he flinched. "You'll be talking through a phone... or yelling more likely... and pronounce somehow three words: dark, fight, the time we will attack," she turned at him. "Can you do it?"

"Of course," he smirked, raising a thumb.

"Then, we all have to hide," Kurapika said, and she nodded.

"And, in the dark, we have to manage to either save Gon and Killua or kidnapping the leader," she said, in a serious tone. "We can use him later as a hostage in exchange of the boys."

Kurapika thought about it for a little, before nodding.

"Sounds as it would work," he said.

"It _will_ work," Hitomi replied, determined.

Yeah, there was no way they failed. If Gon and Killua got dead... she would never forgive herself. Never.

She looked at her bracelet, the one she had got for her birthday, later that day.

 _"Don't worry, Killua, I'll protect you no matter what," she smiled warmly._

At that time, it was supposed to be a joke, but now it wasn't one anymore. She now really meant it, she wanted to protect _him_...

But he protected _her_ instead.

Senritsu noticed something, making her look at the girl her and smile. Hitomi, on the other hand, raised an eyebrow at her gaze, feeling a little uneasy.

"Your heartbeat become tender all of sudden," she said. "Did something happen?"

Hitomi flinched. She had forgot the woman's hell hearing.

"You were looking at that bracelet, which I had never seen you with before," Kurapika added. "Where did you get it?"

"Today is my birthday, idiot," she murmured, blushing slightly.

"And it was a gift from...?"

"Someone I don't remember," she completed the phrase.

They stayed quiet for a few seconds, before Leorio's laughter broke the silence.

"I didn't give it to you, and that only leaves Gon and Killua," he wagged his eyebrows. "Gon complained all the day because he couldn't get a gift... so you know who is left."

The girl flinched again.

"So it was Killua..." Kurapika smiled a little. "That's why that that thing is that special for you."

"It's not!" she looked away.

"You are lying," Senritsu said, making reference at the girl's heartbeat. "So... do you like Killua-kun?"

That question took her out of guard. She had never thought about the boy in terms of liking or not liking, but she remembered all the times with him and she felt heat in her cheeks.

She would never admit it, but...

"Maybe... just a little..." Hitomi mumbled, unconsciously.

All of them looked at her, and she realized what she had done. Her eyebrow trembled in irritation.

 _"Damn... I said it aloud..."_

"Aww... The bratty-girl likes the bratty-boy!" Leorio teased. "How cute~"

"Shut up!" Hitomi shouted, feeling more embarrassed than she had ever felt before. "Concentrate in the traffic instead of talking nonsense!"

She slowly turned her head towards her brother, who had an amused smile in his face. She opened her mouth to say something, but no word came out of it.

"I had never thought that I would live to see the day you develop a crush," Kurapika put a hand over her shoulder.

"You too?" she pouted.

* * *

End of another chapter!

 **JokeLover123:** ... I'm imagining her like you said and I'm freaking out a little... much... XD Thanks for reviewing, and I wish you enjoyed this chapter.

 **SoulXHunter:** Thank you a lot for leaving a review! Hatsu development will come a little later... sorry for telling you this again... Anyway, let's hope you liked this chapter :)

 **Silent readers:** I just hope you had fun here :) Thanks for reading.

See you all!


	21. Kidnaped Again x End? x Heart Attack

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 21: Kidnaped... Again x End of the Spider? x Heart Attack**

"Calm down, Hitomi," Kurapika, who was disguised as a receptionist, told her before teasing her with a straight face. "Killua's just fine."

"Get serious, can't you?" she replied, annoyed. "Gon is also in danger, if you didn't notice."

The girl was hiding behind the counter, next to Senritsu. She was getting a little impatient, since they were taking too long to arrive.

But her eyes opened and stopped peering when she saw them arriving.

"They are here," Senritsu murmured.

"Okay," the girl nodded, looking at her watch. "It's 6:50 already, so we should attack at 7:00."

"We have to let Leorio know," Kurapika said.

Senritsu nodded and texted Leorio, who was reading the newspaper close from where they were. Hitomi looked at the boys again, and noticed that Killua's lips were moving, like he was saying something she wasn't able to hear.

"He is asking me for a signal that we're here," Senritsu told them.

"That's good," Hitomi smirked. "He is already looking for a signal, so it won't be difficult to make him understand."

So, she took her cell phone and texted Leorio.

 _"Now, let's start!"_

Once he read the message, he sighed. He pressed his phone against his ear and slapped the newspaper against the table in front of him.

"What time do you think it is already?!" he shouted. "Idiot! It's not Beiroku! It's Beichitaku Hotel! How could you have heard it wrong?!"

That caught everyone by surprise, including Killua and Gon. Their eyes widened in recognition of their friend.

Leorio then looked at the Spider's direction.

"What are you looking at? Do you want to pick a fight, huh?" he said, Hitomi shook her head and facepalmed. Senritsu and Kurapika sweatdropped.

"Maybe he is overdoing it a little..." Senritsu laughed nervously.

"Man, he is going to get killed someday..." Hitomi sighed.

Leorio then looked at the people behind him.

"That wasn't for you!" he put his phone again in his ear. "I'm talking to this idiot! This is all due to your lack of responsibility! It's all black before my eyes!"

That was when the two boys understood that it was a message for them.

"Listen, I will only blacken my eyes this once! If it fails, do you know what will happen?!" he turned serious. "Listen carefully, 7 o'clock sharp! Come to this hotel by then! I'll fire you if you're one second late! I'll fire you instantly!"

Then he put his cell phone in his pocket and started to read the newspaper again. Gon and Killua smirked, understanding the plan.

Leorio turned on the radio and they all knew that they had to wait now.

 _"Five minutes left!"_ Hitomi thought at the same time as Killua and Gon, looking at the clock.

After a couple of minutes, Hitomi peered again and growled. Entering through the main door, Nobunaga, Kortopi and Pakunoda of the Genei Ryodan were arriving at the hotel.

"Oh?! What's this?!" Nobunaga exclaimed, seeing both boys. "You two have been captured again?! And where is Red-Eyes?"

Hitomi rolled her eyes. _"That's the best nickname you can think of, dumbass?"_

"She wasn't interested in you guys anymore," Killua lied. "On the other hand, the reward money on your heads has been canceled, but we didn't know. That's all."

"And yet again you lost in the game of pursuit! How pathetic!" Nobunaga joked, before ruffling their hair. "However, it must be fate. It must be destiny that draws us together. Well, let's be friends!"

"We came after you because of the reward money," he turned his face around and closed his eyes. "In fact, I don't want to see your face at all!"

"Same with me!" Gon said, doing the same as his friend.

 _"Good one, Whitey!"_ Hitomi smirked. _"It won't seem suspicious like that."_

She however paled when she noticed Pakunoda walking towards them, with the intention of checking them again.

Killua tried to talk to buy some time, but she grabbed both boys' necks and raised them a meter from the floor.

"Moon Child is over," Leorio's radio said. "Our program has only one minute left."

Hitomi growled and forced herself to close her eyes as well, to get used to darkness. She stayed quiet and waited, focusing only on the radio.

"The time is now exactly 7 o'clock."

 _"It's time!"_ Killua and Hitomi thought in unison.

Right when she could heard the people's shouts of surprise, she opened her eyes to find that she could see clearly her surroundings, despite of the darkness of the place.

Hitomi jumped out of her hiding spot and moved her right hand around. The bracelet made a noise and its sound waves collided with Pakunoda's arm, and she released the boys by reflex.

Killua, on the other hand, got free form Machi's threads and kicked her in her belly. Gon kicked Pakunoda, but found himself being dragged upwards by the threads in his hands.

The girl then realized that she couldn't waste more time and ran towards the leader, raising her hand to hit him. He, on the other hand, grabbed her easily.

 _"Now,"_ she said in her head, smirking.

A chain was already wrapped in the boss' hand, making him release Hitomi's fist. Without being able to do anything else, the chains tangled themselves on his body and mouth, making him unable to speak.

Hitomi nodded at Kurapika, who put a hand over Kuroro's shoulder and left, before leaving a message on a knife which he stabbed in the wall. After that, she turned around just to see Gon captured by Nobunaga and Killua being caught by Machi.

Machi made pression on Killua's neck with her arm and he groaned, nearly choked up.

 _"They are gonna get killed!"_ the thought of it made the girl's eyes turn scarlet in anger.

Bad choice.

They all noticed the glow in the middle of darkness and looked at her way. She jumped in the air to free her friends but something stopped her to. Shizuku grabbed her arms and moved one to her back, warning her to not to move or it would snap.

 _"That way of being captured..."_ she grimaced, as her eyes became purple again. _"...it was stupid."_

The lights turned on and they all looked at Hitomi.

"Yo," she sheepishly smiled.

Gon blinked in surprise while Killua shook his head. Little after that, Shizuku looked around and got surprised.

"Where's the boss?"

They all gaped in surprise, but Hitomi. She just smirked.

"You have something to do with it, huh?!" Nobunaga asked angrily, getting closer to the girl.

"Maybe..." her smirk didn't erase from her face, as she motioned him to the dagger in the wall. "But I bet you have something more important to worry about, don't you?"

He growled, before giving Gon to Shizuku, who grabbed him by his foot with the hand she wasn't using to get a hold of Hitomi.

"Paku, are you okay?" Machi asked the woman.

"My left arm and front teeth are broken," she said, before spitting a tooth. "Other than that, I'm fine."

"I have a couple of bones in pain," Machi added, clenching harder the boy she was holding. "I've underestimated you."

On the other hand, Nobunaga read the paper and jumped in his spot.

"Pakunoda," he said. "It's for you."

Pakunoda read it and spaced off for a whole minute. Meanwhile, Nobunaga asked Machi for holding Killua instead, since she was injured.

"Since he left a message, he'll definitely contact us again," he said. "Before that happens, these guys are important hostages. We have to guard them no matter what!"

Killua and Gon looked at Hitomi and she nodded, grinning. They smiled as well, glad that Kurapika was behind all of this.

Nobunaga contacted Phinks and he arrived there right away with Feitan and Shalnark. Phinks asked for them to explain and Nobunaga told them about the surprise attack and the leader's kidnapping. Kortopi gave them the message and they read it.

 _"If you reveal their memories, I'll kill him."_

"Why didn't you chase after them right away?" Feitan asked.

"Machi and Paku were injured," Nobunaga replied.

"And?"

"That guy has a group of Professional Hunters as comrades. Just looking at ability alone, these three kids are enough trouble."

Hitomi growled softly while Gon pouted. _"Looks like we're not professional Hunters then,"_ they thought.

"And?" Feitan inquired.

"These three are very importants hostages!" Nobunaga was pissed off. "As long as they are in our hands, the Chain-user won't do anything stupid! That will give us a chance to save the boss."

"And?"

"And so if these kids escape, everything is finished!" he shouted. "The one that captured the boss might be the chain that even Uvo couldn't break! It's not easy to escape from!"

"So you were scared?" Phinks asked him.

"Didn't I tell you?! There was a blackout!" Nobunaga yelled angrily. "When my eyes adjusted, the boss was already gone!"

"I can't understand it," Feitan released a soft laugh. "You must be glad they were only kids."

Before Nobunaga could reply, Shalnark jumped in the conversation.

"Okay, we'll argue about this later," he told them. "First, we have to think of a strategy."

The Spiders started to discuss about of what to do and for once in her life, Hitomi stayed in silence. She had not idea of what to do. The rest was on Kurapika's shoulders.

Hitomi then noticed Phinks' phone ringing.

"It's from the boss' cell phone," he told them, looking at the ID.

 _"So, Kurapika is on move,"_ she smirked.

He looked at his teammates, hesitating a little bit. Shalnark nodded, so Phinks picked up. The voice on the other side was one he had never heard of. The Chain-user.

"From now on, you will follow my three orders. If you don't, I'll kill your leader instantly," Kurapika ordered. "One, you cannot pursue us. Two, you cannot harm the three hostages. Three, give the phone to the woman called Pakunoda."

He was about to give it to her, but he pressed it against his ear again.

"Before that, can I ask you a question? It's about that second order," he asked. "The three hostages made a big fuss before our arrival. Who knows how many of their bones are broken-"

"Well then, there's nothing to discuss."

And he hung up. Phinks stayed quiet for a while before calling once again.

"What?" Kurapika said icily once he picked up.

"Sorry, I lied," he said, calmly. "The two hostages are fine, please forgive me."

"We are not fine, I'm sick!" Hitomi yelled. "Just by seeing your faces I want to puke."

The Spiders glared at her and she stuck her tongue, being sure that she wouldn't get killed because of Kurapika's hostage. Also, she was bored like hell.

 _"Isn't she nervous?"_ Killua raised an eyebrow while Gon smiled nervously.

Phinks gave Pakunoda the phone and sighed. Meanwhile, Nobunaga gave Killua to Kortopi.

"Really, what a boring guy..."

 ** _SMACK!_**

Machi kicked Phinks whole Pakunoda and Nobunaga hit him in the head. The woman then took the phone and walked away.

After talking for a bit, Pakunoda came back and gave the phone to Nobunaga, since Kurapika didn't want to deal with Phinks again.

"After this, meet with Pakunoda alone. Ask everyone else to return to the base," Kurapika instructed. "Bring the hostages to a place where you often meet up. Give the phone back to Pakunoda and prepare an extra cell phone, I will contact you from time to time on it."

Nobunaga agreed and gave the phone again to Pakunoda. Kurapika told her the time and place and then hanged up.

The woman then left without saying a word. The Spiders argued for a bit, about following or not Pakunoda. The fight ended when Shizuku knocked out Nobunaga, saying that they shouldn't fight.

Not long after, Shalnark phone rang and Phinks asked for it.

"Hello-" he was about to say.

"Give it to the hostages," Kurapika cut him off, icily.

Pissed off, he glared at the phone, clenching it. He walked towards the hostages and pressed it against Hitomi's ear.

"Here listen, it's from your mom," he joked.

"Are those guys all together?" Kurapika asked.

"Yeah, for now. They are all wasting time, fighting over whether following Big-Nose or not, and I'm getting a little bored here," she replied in a deadpan expression.

Phinks put the phone back in his ear.

"Hello-"

"Let me tell you something. I have someone here who has the ability to penetrate your lies," he cut him off again. "This is why Pakunoda followed the orders obediently. I don't care if you come up with any sneaky strategies, however your boss will die. Return to the base within thirty minutes, I'll contact you then."

And Kurapika hanged up, pissing Phinks off. Shalnark, on the other hand sighed.

"Seems like we can't follow her then," he said.

"DAMN IT!" Phinks shouted, throwing the phone to the wall in irritation.

Hitomi shook her head.

 _"The best birthday I had ever have in my whole life,"_ she thought, sarcastically.

* * *

Once again, the Spiders were discussing over Kurapika's conditions of the exchange. A little behind them, the three kids were chained, not giving them the chance of running away.

"Tell us the location, Pakunoda," Phinks said. "Let's kill these three brats first, then we'll kill off that Chain-user."

"Regardless of the consequences?" Machi asked.

"Regardless of the consequences," he nodded. "Tell us now, Pakunoda."

The woman thought about it for a while.

"I'll never reveal the location," she said, determined. "I'll take these three over and return alone. Don't get in my way."

"In my way? Who do you think you are talking to?!" he shouted.

Pakunoda didn't talk, but when she saw Phinks slide into a fighting position, she did the same thing. Machi, on the other hand, stepped between them and glared at the man.

"Just go ahead, Pakunoda," she said as Kortopi stood at her side. "We'll hold them here."

"Are you serious?" Phinks asked. "I don't understand. Do you have a loose screw or something?"

"We'll all probably get killed by that Chain-user before we even get there!" Feitan argued. "These two might even be controlled by him already!"

"It doesn't matter," Machi replied.

Gon clenched his teeth, a little pissed off.

"You really don't understand? Why would Pakunoda be secretive about the location no matter how you plead?! Why would Machi want to stop you?!" he snapped. "Do you really believe that they are controlled?! Haven't you made a decision to rescue your boss?! It's the need to save a comrade... Do you still not understand?!"

"Shut up, you brat," Phinks said, annoyed. "You think you'll be spared that way?"

The boy had enough and was really pissed off right now. He stood up and broke the chains around him.

"I'm not saying this for my own sake!" he yelled.

"At least I'm not the only one pissed off right now," Hitomi stood up and did the same as him. Her eyes shone in scarlet for a second.

"Oh, well..." Killua murmured, easily freeing himself as well.

"Revolting against me?" he walked closer, focusing his Nen in his right fist. "If you have a problem, then bring it on! If you take a step, I'll break your neck."

"You can't," Gon stuck his tongue to him. "There's no way I'm going to move!"

A vein popped up in the man's forehead, annoyed at the boy.

"Kurapika is different from you all," Hitomi smirked. "No matter how much he hates you all, he won't recklessly kill you being swayed by his emotions. That includes your boss too. If he say he will exchange the hostages, so will he."

"Pakunoda, who has met him, should understand this very well," Gon added. "As long as you obey the conditions, your leader will definitely return."

"That's enough out of you two!" Phinks said, pissed off. "Speaking like that... I'm going to make sure you can't say another word from now on."

"Phinks, enough already,· Franklin said. "Just let Pakunoda go."

"Even you're babbling nonsense?!"

Franklin ignored him and turned his head to see Shalnark.

"What's the worst case scenario?" he asked.

"Mmm... The death of the boss, of course. Hisoka, Pakunoda, Machi, Kortopi, Shizuku, Nobunaga and the rest captured by that Chain-user," he thought about it for a little. "And we won't even know the location of the Chain-user, not to mention these three would escape."

"I won't let that happen!" Phinks yelled.

"You guys have got everything wrong. The worst incident would be out total annihilation, the death of the Spiders," Franklin told them. "The case you mentioned is negligible compared to this. The reason is that all of you rely too much on the boss, that reason alone will cause the collapse of our organization, so let's cool our heads a bit. Let her do what she wants. If the boss doesn't return, then we'll kill all who were controlled and resurrect the Spider. It's that simple."

They stayed in silence for a while, until Shalnark's phone rang. Once again, Phinks was the one who picked up.

"Hello-"

"Hand it to the hostages."

Pissed off, he threw it at Gon's direction, who caught it. "Don't break it!" Shalnark shouted.

"Hello, Kurapika," Gon said, still a little angry with the Spiders.

"Are you okay?" Kurapika asked. "Are all of them present?"

"Yes, all are present," he replied.

After that, he threw the phone back to the man, much in Shalnark dismay. The man ignored him and put the phone against his ear.

"We'll obey the conditions."

* * *

The girl couldn't believe her luck. The three kids were walking with Pakunoda at their side, because they were going to get exchanged.

" _I'm going to get exchanged..."_ Hitomi thought. _"I feel like an object."_

"You three, why don't you escape?" Pakunoda asked, snapping her out of her thoughts and making them three look at her. "Afraid that you're not skilled enough? I'm faster than you after all. If I let you escape now, I'll lose the side of the bargain and the Chain-user will have his wish granted to kill the boss. Why don't you escape then? Aren't you his friends?"

"That's because _we're_ his friends!" Gon remarked, making Pakunoda stop in her tracks.

"We don't want Kurapika to kill anyone," Hitomi explained. "Not again."

"That's why we're in the exchange," Killua smiled. "It's the best method."

After that, they started to walk once again. Pakunoda didn't move, she just stared at their backs, with a blank expression.

"Come on, Pakunose!" Hitomi joked. "We'll leave without you!"

 _ **SMACK!**_

"That hurts a lot, big idiot!" Hitomi yelled angrily at Killua.

"You moron! She is still a Spider!" he yelled back. "Do you want die?"

They then turned their heads to Pakunoda, who was smiling slightly. A chill ran through their backs.

"Maybe I want now..." Hitomi murmured. "I'm freaking a little right now."

Killua just nodded, before calming down. Not long after that, they started walking once again until reaching the agreed place.

In the sky, an airship flew around them.

"Board that passenger airship," Kurapika's voice said. "I've already notified them of the destination."

They started to walk as they were instructed, but not long after, they were stopped.

"Wait!" Kurapika yelled. "Stop until we can verify who it is!"

Right then, they all turned around. Their eyes widened at the sight of that man, the one who they wanted to see the least.

"Psycho-clown strikes again..." Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Great."

Pakunoda looked at him, slowly panicking at his presence.

"Why... Why did you come?!" she yelled. "Hisoka!"

Hisoka didn't reply, and Hitomi noticed him talking through the phone with someone, and she supposed it was Kurapika.

"Let me on the airship," he said. "If you refuse, I'll kill Killua, Hitomi and Gon instantly."

They three frowned.

 _"It's a lie, isn't it?"_ Hitomi tried to convince herself. _"I mean, all these speeches he gave us about fruits weren't in vain... or they were?"_

"I said so before, my target is the boss only," Hisoka continued. "The moment he is released, I will leave also. I want to fight with the boss, that's all."

Kurapika didn't have more option than let him on. The five of them then stood in the airship for a while until it arrived at the place. There, they got out there and stared at Kurapika - whose eyes were already red - along Leorio and Senritsu, who were with their hostage, Kuroro.

The Kuruta boy called Killua, who picked up immediately.

"Killua, hold the phone in front of your chest," he instructed.

Killua did as he was told and Kurapika gave the phone to Senritsu. She heard the boy's heartbeat for a while, before hanging up.

"Don't worry," she smiled. "He has the same heartbeat as the original Killua-kun."

"All right!" Kurapika told the ones in front of them. "The exchange begins!"

The three boys looked at each other and nodded, before starting to walk at the same time as the other hostage. The atmosphere became even thicker when they passed by Kuroro and Hitomi swore that the time froze for a instant.

Right when they were nearly arriving at their side, Kurapika took a step closer.

"H-Hey, Kurapika!" Leorio tried to stop his friend, thinking that he was going to do something stupid again. "Stop!"

"Don't worry about it," the blue-eyed Kurapika said, as a huge smile made its place in his face.

Then he turned around and started running towards his friends and his sister. Senritsu and Leorio looked at each other for a while before grinning and doing the same as him.

"Hitomi! Killua! Gon!" Kurapika shouted, happily.

They smiled. Once they arrived, Hitomi raised a hand.

"Yo," her grin widened. "Seems like my perfect plan worked after all."

He smiled warmly at her.

"Are you guys okay?" Kurapika asked worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" Gon exclaimed.

"Well, it was a bit dangerous," Killua commented. "Those Spiders are really headstrong."

"But they were no problem for us," Hitomi said, proudly.

Meanwhile, Kuroro passed by Pakunoda without saying a word. The woman looked at the group as they happily laughed, as Leorio head-locked Gon and rubbed his knuckles on his head, being observed by Killua, who raised an eyebrow.

Hitomi noticed Kurapika still glaring at the leader and placed a hand over his shoulder. He looked back to her smiling face and couldn't help but smile as well. Kurapika ruffled her hair in playful way much in her dismay.

 _"My family isn't gone, at least not all of them,"_ he thought with a smile, before looking at his friends. _"She, they... all of them are my family. I won't let them go away. Never again."_

Once again on the ship, they looked through the window at Hisoka and Kuroro. Much in everyone's surprise, the magician walked away without fighting.

"Why did Hisoka leave without doing anything?" Leorio asked.

"Hisoka already found out about the boss' condition," Kurapika explained. "The leader could've told him about the chain. For Hisoka, it's not a surprise that he believes an opponent who cannot use Nen abilities is not worth fighting."

"Huh? Isn't he a member of the Spiders?" he asked in surprise.

"No, Hisoka has only one goal. And that is to fight with the Spiders' leader."

"What a cruel brother I have! But I guess I can live with it," Hitomi joked. "The clown deserves it for creeping the hell out of me since the Exam."

Kurapika turned around and looked at the three kids, smiling a bit. He walked towards them.

"I'm sorry to have involved you guys in this," he apologized, while the girl shook her head.

"Don't worry," Gon said. "By the way, you've pierced the boss with that chain?"

"Yeah, but that way..." he trailed off, as the smile vanished from his features.

"That way, the Spider incident is over with!" Gon smiled nervously. Killua eyed him for a couple of seconds, before playing along.

"Well yeah, the leader can no longer contact the other members, nor he can use Nen," he boyishly grinned. "Which means that the Spiders have lost their leader."

Seeing Kurapika and Leorio's expressions, Hitomi felt the urge to smack these two boys in their heads. It looked like it had made the opposite effect.

"Even after losing its head, the Spider will not die," Kurapika murmured and looked at the window.

"But Pakunoda will keep her promise!" Gon argued. "Don't pursue the rest of the members anymore!"

Even though she wanted to believe him, Hitomi wasn't able to. However, she knew Gon's intention because it was the same as her. She didn't want Kurapika to fight the Ryodan anymore.

Even if he was trying to get revenge for her family as well.

"Just forget the dead already!" Hitomi said, pissed off. "We're here, alive, and you don't seem to notice that at all! Killing them won't bring Pairo and the others back!"

They all gave her a long look, but Kurapika didn't say anything.

A little frown appeared in Hitomi's features as she watched her brother walking towards the window, resting his hand against the glass. He pressed his forehead against it as the sweat in his face increased.

"For me..." his face was becoming paler and paler as seconds passed by, "For me..."

"Kurapika?" Hitomi took as step closer. "What wro-?"

 _"There are still things I have to do..."_ he thought right before blackness blinded his mind.

Without warning, the boy fell dead weight into the floor. The other five gasped in surprise, before running in his aid.

"Kurapika!"

That's when Hitomi realized that she would have a heart attack soon if things kept developing that way.

* * *

End of another lame chapter! I think I already ended with this arc, so next one is Greed Island!

Anyway, let's see...

 **JokeLover123** **:** Heheh... Thanks for reviewing! I hope you liked this chapter as well :)

 **havanatitiana** **:** Here is an update that I hope didn't disappoint you! Anyway, thanks for leaving a review and I wish you enjoyed this!

 **alice:** Thank you! Hope you liked it :)

 **SoulXHunter:** I'm glad you liked last chapter and I hope you enjoyed this one :) Thank you for reviewing!

 **Silent Readers:** Thank you for passing by here :) I wish you had fun!

See you all later!


	22. The Plan x Saying Goodbye x The Red Eyes

**Discaimer:** As you all already know, I just own my OC, Hitomi. Hunter X Hunter, on the other hand, belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi.

* * *

 **Chapter 22: The Plan x Saying Goodbye x The Red Eyes**

"Sorry I'm late, guys," Hitomi excused herself, as she arrived at the place where Killua and Gon were.

She sat in the floor next to her friends and grabbed an apple from her pocket. As soon as she took a bite and another two after that, she raised an eyebrow at the boys. They were staring at her.

"What?" Hitomi asked, a little annoyed. "I'm hungry."

"I can see that. You're eating like a gorilla," Killua teased, making a vein pop up in her head. "I bet you didn't eat anything since last night."

She flinched.

"It was because I had to take care of Kurapika," she blushed, while taking another bite. "I'm his sister after all."

"You sure worry a lot about him, don't you?" Gon smiled.

"I don't!" Hitomi yelled, in embarrassment..

Killua sighed, giving her a long look. Before that, he turned at the computer once again to search for something about Greed Island.

"How is Kurapika's fever?" the boy asked after a while.

"It hasn't gone down at all," she replied, glancing in curiosity at the same ring as Gon. "It's been more than a day now."

"I hope his fever doesn't go down at all..." Gon commented.

Hitomi raised an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah, me too..." Killua then realized what Gon had said. "Hey! You just said something really crazy there, didn't you?"

"You see, if the auction ends while he's still sick, then he might not have to go and fight the Ryodan anymore."

"Makes sense," Hitomi gazed at her feet.

She could see his point. She, too, didn't want him to fight anymore. In fact, she had never wanted to in first place, but the circumstances made her yield a bit.

And it all ended like that.

"I guess that if it was really revenge he was after, he should have just killed off the boss instead of rescuing us," Killua said.

"Kurapika wouldn't do something like that," Gon commented. "It's not exactly that but when I learned about Kurapika's ability, I felt he wouldn't do that."

"The Judgement Chain," Hitomi remembered. "But if he was really just trying to get revenge, shouldn't he had chosen a different skill? If he wanted to kill them, why did he go in all that trouble?"

"That's if he was facing a single enemy," Killua said, leaning his back on the floor. "Kurapika faced more than one. Even if he caught one, he wouldn't be able to kill him right away."

No one talked for a while, before the white-headed decided to broke the silence.

"But one thing is certain, we don't want him moving around for now," he said. "If their boss doesn't return, they'll probably intensify their hunt for Kurapika."

"And for us..." Hitomi trailed off.

An idea crossed Killua, who shot to the computer. He looked for something on it and blinked, crossing his arms.

"Nothing," he said. "I thought they'd put a bounty on Kurapika and us for sure."

"I'm not sure if this is good or bad," Hitomi frowned.

"Huh?" Gon asked. "Why?"

"Maybe they are going to look for us themselves," she looked to him, "And we would then have a not-so-pleasant meeting with them."

Gon flinched at the thought. After another long while, Killua looked at the boy.

"Anyway, what do you plan to do about Greed Island?" he asked. "You are going to the auction, right?"

"But how?" the girl asked. "We barely have enough money to reach the minimum bid."

"Gon said he had a plan," Killua told her, before looking at the other kid. "It had better work."

"It will work, it really will!" he said in conviction. "It's a fifty-fifty chance."

"Earlier, you said that it was a 70% sure shot..." his face fell.

"Now, I'm having a bad feeling about this," Hitomi facepalmed.

Killua and Hitomi then sat in front of Gon, waiting for him to talk.

"So, the four of us will go: me, you two and Zepile-san, okay?" he said.

"Yeah, Leorio can keep an eye on Kurapika," Killua replied.

"Maybe we should take a taxi to the auction house," Hitomi added. "We can't freely show our faces around the city."

"And so, coming back to the topic, what's your plan?"

Gon just stared blankly at his friends.

"It's about time to spill the beans," Killua said, Gon didn't say anything.

"Come on, tell us," Hitomi's eyebrow twitched. "We are waiting. Time is gold."

The boy stayed in silence, pissing his friends off. Killua started to strangle him while Hitomi pulled his cheeks painfully.

"I'll tell you, guys!" Gon shouted as well as he could. "I'll tell!"

After that, they sat on the floor again and gave him a stern look. Gon sighed, still hurt by them but recovered little after.

"It's kind of over-dependant on others, so I didn't want you two to be shocked or anything," he said.

"I don't care, get me shocked then," Hitomi said, feeling impatient, "Get to the point already."

It sure shocked her, and it made her blink at him in surprise. The plan was that simple that Gon's mind would be the most complex thing in the whole world...

That was way too much.

"I see," Killua blinked as well, "It sounds fun, or should I say there's no other choice. Realistic and real."

"How come we didn't think about that before?" Hitomi sighed. "Forget the 50%, that is an 80% chance of success."

"Really?" Gon exclaimed, excited.

"We can do this!" the other boy exclaimed. "We've got a chance!"

* * *

Hitomi entered to the room where her sick brother was, along Senritsu and Leorio. She raised an eyebrow, seeing that he was sitting down against a wall, and covered with sheets.

"What's going on?" she asked.

Leorio and Senritsu looked at her, with a serious expression.

"I'm not sure, but he seems to be more comfortable this way," the woman replied. "His heartbeat is steady now, and his fever seems to be breaking."

The girl looked at him, just to jump in her spot when he opened his dull blue eyes. However she frowned when she realized that he wasn't even looking at them.

"He has been doing that for a while now," Leorio explained. "He looks like he's completely ignoring us and fighting something on his own."

"On his own... again," Hitomi murmured, as she looked at her brother's eyes closing.

Hitomi leaned her back against the wall and stared at his painful expression. She even swore that, one time when his eyes opened, a small scarlet glint shone in them. She was worried, not only because of his high fever, but what _caused_ his fever instead.

She had a hunch that it had something to do with Nen.

"Hey, Leorio, call me if something happens," Hitomi said, in a serious expression. "If his fever doesn't go down by the time that Gon and Killua depart to Greed Island, I'm staying here."

Hitomi turned around to walk away, but Leorio stopped her.

"Wait, are you sure about this?" he asked. "Kurapika wouldn't be happy if you do that for him. Think about him a little."

"Tell me, Leorio," she turned around, before smiling sadly. "Did he think about me once this whole week?"

The man didn't find words to reply. She sighed, before going back to her room. Right there, she took out her cell phone and dialed a number.

Just him could know about it.

"Hitomi-chan, how have you been doing?" Wing's voice rang through the line.

"Fine... kind off," she murmured.

"Why did you call me this time?" he didn't feel her voice like always. "Is it about Nen?"

"Well, since it was predictable, let's make this quick. I have to go in a while," Hitomi replied. "It's possible to have a fever because of Nen?"

Wing didn't say anything for a while, making her nervousness increase.

"Why do you want to know?" he asked, carefully.

And now it was time for Hitomi to remain quiet. Wing sighed in surrender.

"Fine then. It only works on dead people. Death can make Nen stronger," he told her, making her shift uncomfortably. "So, if the person dies with a huge grudge in another, their malice becomes powerful, and the Nen can even affect the object of that hatred. A high fever is one of its ways."

Hitomi frowned slightly. She knew it.

"I see..." she murmured. "Thank you."

"Wait up, Hitomi-chan," Wing said, before she could even hung up.

She stayed in silence, hearing her teacher's sigh.

"I have no idea what are you going through, but you don't have to worry much about it," he smiled at the other side of the phone, "The Nen is malicious, that's true, but not mortal. If the victim stays strong, they will eventually overcome it."

"I understand," she smiled as well, "Take care."

* * *

"Can someone tell me..." Hitomi said under her breath, "Why the hell do I have to wear this?!"

Gon and Killua turned around to see the girl. She was wearing a pale pink dress, with a rose in her chest, and white heels. Her hair was prettily pulled back, letting her ruby earing visible.

"It suits you!" Gon said happily, before turning around to see Killua, who was staring at her as well. "Doesn't it, Killua?"

Killua flinched for a little, before hiding his soft blush with a smirk.

"Yeah, I think," he teased. "At least for a tomboy like you."

Hitomi just growled.

"It's formality, Hitomi," Zepile said, while walking towards them. "Don't bother about it too much, it's just for today."

"Man!" she complained, placing her hands behind her head. "I wish I was born a boy!"

"You _are_ a boy already," Killua mocked.

Hitomi glared at him.

 ** _SMACK!_**

After that, they took a taxi, arrived at the Auction House, and entered using Gon's pass. Once inside, Zepile stayed behind watching some kind of vases while the kids entered to the place where the game was going to be auctioned.

However, they had to stop in their tracks when they spotted two familiar faces.

"Hey," Phinks said, while stopping as well along Feitan.

Less than a second after that, they started to run away from them until they had to stop, because the Spiders had stepped in their way.

"How rude," Phinks smirked. "You didn't have to run away like that."

The three of them frowned since they didn't have where to run.

"Why are these guys here?" Gon asked softly.

"How should I know?" Killua replied, feeling nervous.

"You again..." she murmured, a little angry. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Don't worry, Red-Eyes," Feitan said, as she realized that her sight was already scarlet. "We have no intention on harming you."

She took a step back, growling softly.

"Neither the Chain-user," Phinks added.

"Huh?" Gon said, surprised.

"Because of Nen," Hitomi realized, causing both boys look at her. "Since it makes stronger after death and affect the most hated object, your boss will end up being the victim."

"And since he doesn't have Nen, he will have to take it directly," Killua realized the thought. "And he might die."

The two Spiders just stared at them for a little.

"So, for that reason, we will no longer bother you," Phinks told them. "We just came to enjoy the auction."

Hitomi wanted to believe their words, she really wanted to. But she just wasn't able to do it. She had the feeling that it was going to end that easily.

"Um..." Gon asked all of sudden. "What about Pakunoda-san?"

"She's dead."

At that statement, Gon lowered his head. His friends just looked at him, a little sad as well.

"Paku wanted to thank you, guys."

After that, they walked away. The three kids sighed in relief, seeing that they were alive after encountering the Spiders again.

However, Hitomi was still a little worried.

"That's bad," she murmured. "If she's dead, that means she told them my brother's secrets."

"That's true," Killua nodded. "Also, if they knpw that their boss has Kurapika's chain in him, how could they still be so composed?"

Hitomi nodded, still thinking on silence. First, she had thought that the Nen affecting Kurapika was only from Uvogin, and now it looked like it was Pakunoda's as well, so her brother would be in a great disadvantage. Second, as Killua said, they were _so_ calm. It was like they knew something they didn't... Like the Judgment Chain wasn't a problem anymore... or...

 _"Or like they found a way to make the Nen useless..."_ her eyes widened. _"That's bad. Really bad."_

A hand on her shoulder snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked at her right side, just to see Killua and Gon smiling slightly at her.

"Don't worry about it," Killua said. "Kurapika is strong, you know."

"That's right!" Gon grinned.

She nodded, smiling slightly as her eyes became purple again. After that, they walked to the place of the audition and sat down next to Zepile.

After a bit, the time of Greed Island auction came. Hitomi sighed, staring at the number of the bid in the monitor increasing quickly.

"Number 201 doubles it to 24 billion!" the woman exclaimed.

Wait... wasn't 201...?

Hitomi turned around to see Gon, who had risen his thumb. The other three looked at him, on surprise, and panicked.

"I was wondering what this meant," he told them.

"And that was a good excuse to do it?!" Hitomi scolded. "That's the signal to double the previous bid! Once it's called, you can't go and say that it was a mistake!"

The woman asked for another bidder, but no one said anything.

"If she closes it now, we can't pay for it!" Killua yelled at him.

"Worst-case scenario, we could end up in jail!" Zepile panicked.

" _Gon_ could end up in jail," Hitomi glared at the boy. "I refuse to go there for his stupidity!"

Before someone could reply, a man raised his hand.

"Number 16 raised it to 25 billion."

The other four released the breath they were holding all this time.

"We're saved..." Hitomi murmured.

"You should be more careful!" Killua scolded, right before grinning. "Although I was about to do it too..."

"Wait," she blinked, before an eyebrow started to twitch. "You were?!"

After a couple of bids, the game ended up being sold at 30.5 billions to Battera, who had been buying all the copies until now... and the one who was looking for Hunters to play the game.

That was the reason of the three kids walked to him when the auction was over. Hitomi stared at his assistant for a long time.

 _"Why are his ears that pointy?"_ she raised an eyebrow. _"Strange."_

But she just shook her head and did her best to remain quiet.

"Excuse me, Battera-san," Gon called. "We are Hunters and we would like to help you clear Greed Island."

They both stayed silent for a while, before starting laughing. A vein popped up in Hitomi's head as she swore she was going to kill that old man soon.

"Sorry for laughing at you," he said when he stopped his laugh.

"Even if you don't believe us, we are Pro Hunters," the girl told him, proudly.

"Really?" he looked surprised. "Do you have a license?"

"Yes," Gon and Hitomi said on the same time.

"Yours it's still at the pawn shop," Killua whispered to Gon.

His face fell at the memory. Battera on the other hand didn't either listen to them or care about the fact.

"It's true that I hire Hunters who are currently striving to clear the game," he said. "But the number that can play is limited. Even if you guys really are Pro Hunters, I can't simply let you play based on just that."

"But the catalog said that the number of players is unlimited," Gon said.

"If you are just going to 'play' everyone can," he replied. "However you'd need a memory card to save the data. One card per person and with the way the PlayStation is set up, the maximum number of people who can play is eight."

Killua clenched his teeth. _"Don't try to buy the game by overdoing it, but rather, try to get hired by the person that buys it,"_ he remembered Gon's plan. _"I thought it might work too, but then again, I guess our plan failed."_

"Oh yeah," Gon said to his friends. "All thirty blocks of the memory card will be filled by Greed Island's data, won't they?"

Battera looked at them in surprise, along the Hunter, before standing up from his seat.

"How do you know that?" he asked.

"We have a save data for Greed island," Gon replied.

"Have you guys played it before?"

"No," he shook his head. "We just have the data."

Hitomi gave the man a long look.

 _"First he looks bored at our presence here and now looks interested..."_ she thought. _"What's him up to?"_

"During the game, it is guarded by Nen, so you can't remove the card," he told them. Hitomi's eyes then widened.

"So to pull the card out of the system, you need another item," she looked at her friends with a knowing look. "And that is..."

"That ring!" Killua realized.

"That's right!" Gon got it as well.

Battera gave them a long look, amazed at the fact that they knew even that. He then, turned around to see the Hunter in the eye.

"It seems they have the right to be examined, Tsezugera."

Tsezugera just nodded, before taking a couple of steps closer to them.

"You can use Nen, right?" he asked. "Why don't you show us your Ren?"

They did as they were told and showed him their Ren. Tsezugera used Gyo and stared at them for a long time.

"They are no good," he said, shocking them. "These three will just die if they play."

"How can you tell without trying?!" Gon asked, angrily.

"It'll too late after you try, kid," he replied.

Battera, on the other hand, sat down once again.

"The thirty-two sets of Greed Island that I have contain about one hundred Hunters that I have hired to play," he explained. "But more than half of them have given up on clearing the game or even getting back to the real world. As long as a player is alive in the game, you can't remove the memory card so no one can replace them. That's why I limit the players. They have to at least be strong enough to get back to the real world."

"But how do you know we wouldn't be able to do that?!" Gon yelled.

"And how can this guy tell anyway?" Killua asked.

"Because he is a Pro Hunter who has personally experienced Greed Island," Battera replied calmly.

Tsezugera raised his finger, showing them the ring on it. It was identical to Gon's one.

"You guys know about this ring, right? I have been back and forth in the game five times in the past six months," he smirked. "From that experience, the difficulty of getting an item that can bring you back is four of ten. But with Nen like yours, it'll be game over before you can even get there."

"But you haven't cleared it yet, have you, Elf-guy?" she smirked.

Tsezugera's eyebrow twitched at her comment. Killua just glared at the girl, raising his eyebrow at her because of the nickname.

"What?" she shrugged, looking at Killua. "Have you seen his ears?"

He just shook his head.

"I'm about eighty percent right now, more than you could ever manage to get," he replied, still annoyed at the girl. "That's only because I'm playing inefficiently... But that doesn't concern you guys."

They frowned.

"Once the exam is over, I'll return to the game," he smirked. "The next time I return, I'll probably clear it."

"Exam?" Killua asked.

"I will win the auctions for all seven Greed Island games here," Battera said. "In addition, I will advertise widely to search for capable players. Many Hunters will come forth and respond, and will probably end up in a high level competition."

"I will be the one examining and selecting the players," the Hunter added.

 _"And here I thought that Menchi was some troublesome examiner..."_ Hitomi rolled her eyes.

"The exam date is September 10th, here in Southern Peace," the old man told them.

* * *

"That's irritating!" Gon exclaimed angrily as they arrived at his room. "I'll definitely pass!"

Hitomi sighed, leaning herself against a wall. She had to admit it though, she was as annoyed as her friend was.

"But what that guy said is true..." she mumbled, as if it left a bad taste in her mouth.

"What do you mean?!" he snapped.

"Hey, don't snap at me," she raised an eyebrow. "Do I look like Tsezugera for you? Because I'm glad to tell you I'm not."

Killua then looked at Hitomi for a few seconds and his eyes widened slightly, before smirking a little.

"What?" she said, a little annoyed.

"I think I got your little secret," he said. "You technique."

She smirked as well and sat down in Gon's bed, remaining quiet.

"We've just been doing Ten and Ren everyday, right?" Killua told Gon. "I was thinking that it's about time we move to the next level."

"Next level?" Gon was confused.

"Learn Ten, know Zetsu and through Ren attain Hatsu," the boy reminded him.

The other's boy eyes opened slightly in surprise.

"It took you a long time, you slowpokes," her smirk widened. "The answer always was Hatsu, the Ultimate Technique."

"Ah!" Gon exclaimed, surprised.

On the other hand, Killua walked towards the window and looked through it for a little.

"Not only Hitomi, when Kurapika learned Nen he was about the same level as we were too. But the reason he was able to fight the same level as the Ryodan was his Ultimate Technique," he looked at him, "Of course, he's taken some life threatening risk because of that. But it shouldn't be like that for us. It was never like that for Hitomi."

"But the more risk the technique have, the powerful it becomes.." Hitomi thought out loud.

"Kurapika took on a heavy oath to gain an almost invincible power against the Ryodan," Gon commented.

Hitomi nodded, narrowing her eyes in deep thought.

 _"He could get awesome powers just by keeping his eyes red..."_ she thought. _"Wait, he learned to control them with the same level of Nen I have now. That means...!"_

At the idea she was getting, she abruptly stood up. The two boys blinked at her, staring in wonder, making the girl give them a nervous smile.

"Whatever, I think you should start with your Hatsu training right away," she told them, walking towards the door. "My technique is nowhere close to complete, so I have to improve it before you guys catch me up."

"Wait a second," Killua stopped her. "What type of idea do you have?"

"Who knows?" she sheepishly smiled at him, pissing him off a little. "You are not going to tell me after all."

And after that, she left to her room. It was time to start.

She looked at her figure in the mirror and activated her Ren for a long time. She then furrowed her eyebrows and her eyes flashed a red-like color, before returning into their original violet one.

Hitomi then fell into her knees and stayed like that for a while, gasping a little for air.

"Wow, my dear brother," she mumbled to herself. "You make it look easier than it is."

Once again, she stood up and looked at her reflection.

 _"I can't lose to Blondie either."_

* * *

"But are you okay _for real?_ " Hitomi asked in worry.

"Yes, Hitomi, for the eleventh time, I'm fine now," Kurapika smiled a bit, as they made their way to the airport. "I'm sorry I worried you that much."

"I wasn't... _that_ worried," she looked away.

Leorio and Senritsu just chuckled at the scene. Not long after that, they all stopped in their tracks.

"I think we'll be going now," Kurapika said.

"Yeah," Leorio replied.

Hitomi released a long sigh, before poking him in his chest in a scolding way.

"Promise you won't do anything stupid again, Blondie," she said.

"I won't," he kindly smiled.

"Don't even think about turning off your phone, answer our calls and call us _whatever_ happens," she gave him a stern glare. "Not like last time..."

"Yes, yes..." he sweatdropped.

"Ah," she looked at Senritsu. "If he dares to do something suicidal-like, please hit him hard in the head."

The woman laughed, nervously.

"Is that brat lecturing his older brother?" Leorio whispered to the woman, in surprise. "She looks like an old hag."

On the other side, Kurapika's smile widened.

"Give Gon and Killua my best regards. Those two are training with every second they have, aren't they?" he said and she nodded. "And I can tell you are too. Are you having any luck in your training to control your Scarlet Eyes?"

"What?" Hitomi was surprised. "How did you know?"

"I'm not your older brother for nothing," he chuckled.

The girl looked away, having her brother's hand ruffling her hair in response, in a playful way.

"I promise this will the last time I say goodbye to you," she told him.

Kurapika raised an eyebrow, looking doubtfully at his little sister, who was smirking because of something he didn't know.

"Because next time we meet I'll already have a pair of Scarlet Eyes," she told him. "Just wait until then."

The boy released a soft chuckle while shaking his head. Hitomi had always been, and would always be, just impossible.

"I'm looking forward it," he gave her a brief hug, before looking at Leorio as well. "Take care, you two."

"See you," Leorio waved his hand.

After that, Kurapika walked away. Senritsu looked at them for a few seconds, smiling kindly.

"You guys have the best heartbeats of all the people I met in this city. Hitomi's is determined and passionate, but it's somehow gentle. Leorio's heartbeat, however, has a calm, room and warm sound," she looked at Leorio. "I think being a doctor or a teacher would suit you. You might make a great teacher, I suggest a change of occupation."

"Well, I'll think about it," he scratched the back of his head.

Before Senritsu could even leave, Hitomi stopped her from doing so.

"About of what I said to you before, I'm serious," she said. "Please, take care of him. He seems calm, but the is reckless. And he's smart, but does things without thinking."

"It's on the blood, isn't it?" Leorio teased, making the girl glare at him. "Either way, I think the same as her. It seems that he opens up to you. So please, put on the brakes for him."

"Okay," Senritsu smiled.

Despite not being as sure as the last time they said goodbye to each other about when they would meet again, Hitomi wasn't worried nor sad at all.

Siblings' bond was strong, so she had nothing to worry about. They were going to meet someday, sometime. She was sure that, whenever she expected it the least, Kurapika and her were going to meet up once again.

* * *

Today was the day of the exam, for which the three had been training for. There were a lot of people but only thirty-two would pass it.

Killua frowned at the sight of the people walking inside the curtain, to not come back again.

 _"About ten people have entered already but not a single one of them has come back out,"_ he thought. _"Does that meant that they all passed?"_

Hitomi saw his worried expression and sighed.

"Don't worry, I doubt that the people who are lined up right now pass, and let alone the fools who are waiting for the others to get back to heard about the test," she told him. "There won't be thirty-two qualified people to begin with."

Behind them, they hear a laugh. They turned around, just to see a man.

"You are good at thinking, girl. In fact, I was thinking the same thing. There will probably be about twenty people that will be picked from this selection. The ones that may pass are the ones that stood right away after it started and us, the ones that figured out the trick and stayed behind to concentrate," he looked at Gon. "Right, kid?"

"I wasn't thinking that far ahead. I think that the exam will be hard so thirty-two people won't be selected," he admitted "But Battera-san is saying first come first serve, but I think that since he has gathered so many people so that he can test all their strengths."

"You are absolutely right too, boy," he laughed, before standing up. "Either way, my name is Puhat, nice to meet you."

After that, Puhat disappeared behind the curtains. A couple of minutes after that, Killua stood up as well.

"I'll go ahead, guys," he said.

"Killua!" Gon, cheerful as always, stood up. "Do your best!"

"Yeah!" Hitomi said from her seat. "Don't lose."

Killua waved his hand, before walking away. A couple of minutes later, Hitomi lazily stood up to go as well.

"I'm getting a little bored here, so I have to do something before I fall asleep," she stretched herself. "See you around."

"Hitomi!" he said in a jump. "Do your best too!"

"I think you should save your energy a little for the test..." she sweatdropped.

She then went to the place. Hitomi walked through a long, _long_ corridor, before arriving to a room. There was Tsezugera, standing on the middle of it.

Hitomi then noticed that there wasn't any lights so she looked above her. The light bulb was broken, and the girl had the feeling that she knew who had done it.

"Yo," she waved at Tsezugera.

"Show me your Ren," he replied coldly, and almost annoyed at her presence.

"Still angry because I pointed out your pointy ears?" she sheepishly smiled, and his eyebrow twitched. "If you don't like the elf-thing, you maybe prefer talking about your strange beard? Or about your white eyebrows that contrasts with your black hair in such a wonderful wa-?"

"Show me _your Ren,"_ he glared at her.

"Okay, okay..." she sighed. "Well, would you mind if I put some Hatsu in the mix?"

"No problem," he smirked. "Showing your Ren is basically showing the results of your training as a Hunter, so in other words you're showing me how strong you are. But if you are that confident, go ahead. Show me that Ren isn't everything you have."

"As you wish," she grinned evilly.

He stepped back when he saw her eyes turning red, the most intense shade of scarlet you could ever see. Tsezugera then found himself staring at them for a long time, in shock, as the girl just stared back.

But then her sadistic grin widened.

"Hey, are you okay?" she asked. "Is that sharp sound still sounding in your head?"

That's when Tsezugera's head started to hurt like hell. As she had said, a sharp sound started to ring in his head, at the point to almost lose his balance.

"It must hurt a lot..." she murmured.

"Stop it..." Tsezugera murmured, leaning to a wall to not to fall.

"What?" she grinned. "I can't hear you~"

And the sound didn't stop, and Tsezugera was sure that his head would explode if he didn't do anything any moment soon.

"I said that you have to STOP IT NOW!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Okay, okay. You are bossy," she sighed, turning her eyes violet again. "Well, did you liked it?"

His headache stopped and he stared at her for a long time.

"Is okay," his eyebrow twitched a little bit as he tried to keep his cool. "You pass."

She smirked once again, walking towards the door. She put her hand on the metal knob, but before she could do something else, Tsezugera talked.

"That eyes are not common in any normal human," he said. "Are you a survivor from the Kuruta Clan by any chance?"

"Do I look like a ghost for you?" she said jokingly. "No? Well, maybe you are right then. I'm a survivor."

Then she walked out of there and closed the door behind her. Not long after, she arrived in another room, filled with a lot of people.

Her face fell when she spotted a girl with blue eyes and light brown hair tied in two ponytails, a really girly girl.

 _"Did Elf-boy pass that girl... for real?"_ she thought in disbelief.

"Hitomi!" she heard someone calling her.

She looked up to see Killua, who ran up to her. She smiled at the sight of the boy and ran towards him too.

"So you passed too," she grinned.

"Of course," he raised his thumb. "Anyway, what was that?"

She blinked.

"I swear I heard that bearded guy yell something like 'stop' and a second later you came out from the room," he told her. "What did you do to him?"

"Oh, that..." Hitomi didn't talk for a few seconds, before smiling sheepishly. "It's a se-cr-et~!"

Before she realized what was happening, Killua was head locking her. She tried to get out of his grasp, but it was fruitless.

"Come on, tell me!" he rubbed his knuckles against her head.

"Stop it, Whitey!" she yelled, still teasing him. "Don't you know how to treat a lady?!"

"Lady? Yeah right!" he joked. "I would call you Barbie Girl, but you are not even a girl. So, let's go with Non-Barbie Girl."

"Okay, okay... I'll tell you only if you explain why the hell the lights don't work!"

He released her and smirked, but didn't say anything. That was the proof enough for her to know her hunch was right.

 _ **BANG!**_

They all looked at the closed door, because of that loud explosion. Hitomi chuckled before sitting in a seat, placing her hands behind her head.

"Why don't you go and interrogate Gon instead?" she looked at him by the corner of her eye.

"How are you that sure about-?"

Before Killua could end his sentence, the door opened and revealed their friend, Gon. She looked at Killua, smirking.

"Told you so."

* * *

Hitomi took some meat and and put it into her mouth. She tasted it like never before in her life because of two reasons. First, she didn't know what kind of food she would find in Greed Island, and second, everything was paid by Leorio.

Said guy was reading the contract paper.

"One, you won't complain if you are injured or killed," he read.

"I don't think it would be possible for to complain if you are dead," Hitomi commented. "It's biologically imposible... and plain stupid."

"Two, Battera-san can claim anything you bring back from the game," he continued, ignoring the girl. "Three, there will be a reward of 50 billion for clearing the game. The contract states that if that's okay then sign."

They looked at each other before nodding. After they signed the paper, they walked away the restaurant. Leorio looked at them with a smile in his features.

"Well, I'll be going now," he said, before a taxi stopped in front of them.

"You better study, old man," Hitomi told him.

"I will, Chibi-chan," he replied, pissing Hitomi off a little. "You guys be careful. I think you will be okay together but you can't be certain."

"We'll be fine," Killua assured.

Leorio was about to enter to the taxi but Gon stopped him from doing so.

"Leorio!" he called. "The next time we meet you'll be a doctor, right?"

"You..." he looked at him in surprise. "Does that mean we won't meet for a minimum of four years?"

"I don't think it will be that much," Hitomi commented. "But it won't be anytime soon either."

And after that, Leorio left in the taxi. Gon waved the guy before walking away along his friends, and started to talk about the game.

"There's one thing we learned," Killua said. "Something can be brought back from the game."

"That's true," Hitomi nodded. "That would explain why he wouldn't mind about spending that much money in just a game."

"What do you mean, guys?" Gon asked.

"They are not real-world objects, they come from a fantasy one. They could be anything like a medicine for all illness, infinite money or even one which can give immortality to the user," she explained. "Well, they are millions of possibilities."

* * *

After leaving York Shin, they went to the agreed place. There were a lot of people and consoles, in which they were some people playing, who never returned.

"Before we start, I would like to give you some information," Tsezugera said. "These games aren't independent, meaning that no matter which system you start off with, you all end up in the same place."

Hitomi turned to Killua.

"Is that what they call an online game?" she whispered.

"It's something like that," he nodded, putting his hands on his pockets.

"What does that mean?" Gon asked, cluelessly.

The white-head sighed.

"It's hard explaining to a gaming newbie," he said. "But it basically means that everyone gets to play in the same place."

"What? Isn't that obvious?" he asked. "All the games are here."

"It's not like that but... Oh, well."

Tsezugera then hold a memory card and showed it to them.

"Once you put this in, you will start the game immediately," he told them. "But first we must choose the starting order. When you get into the game there is an explanation of the game but it can be heard one at a time."

"So even if we start all the same time we will have to wait inside?" Puhat asked.

"Exactly," he nodded. "We will pick the order here so there won't be a hassle inside."

"Okay then," Puhat nodded. "Let's go with rock-paper-scissors. The loser is the winner."

"Agreed!" Gon raised his hand, happily.

Killua stared at him in disbelief while Hitomi crossed her arms in front of her chest, shaking her head. All Hunter played some rounds and, after a while, Gon got declared the first place.

"Number seventeen..." Killua mumbled to himself.

"Oh, such a wonderful luck," Hitomi teased. "I got in the second place."

He glared at her, annoyed.

"How did you do it?" he asked.

"Didn't you learn anything in the Trick Tower?" she grinned. "It's called psychology, dear _Leorio."_

"What did you call me?" he asked, as his eyebrow twitched in irritation.

"Oh, that's true, you are Whitey. I'm sorry," she sheepishly smiled. "It's just like you look awfully a lot like him. I think I just mistook you two."

A vein popped up in his head, but not long after he smirked in a teasing way.

"So tell me, Miss Strategy," he joked. "How come Gon defeated you?"

"Well, you just can't use psychology on Gon," she sighed, annoyed. "He doesn't think to begin with."

"Maybe you have a point..." he sweatdropped while looking at the boy.

He, on the other hand, walked to the front.

"You have a save data, right? Are you going to use it?" Tsezugera asked. He turned around and glanced at his friends, who nodded. "Don't worry. Wherever the data was saved, you'll all start on the same place."

Gon put the ring on his finger and introduced the memory card on the console. After that, he put his hands above the JoyStation.

"Gon, once you hear the instructions wait for us at the starting point," Killua said.

"Before Killua arrives... it will sure a _lot_ of time," Hitomi murmured.

Killua gave her a death glare, which she ignored. Gon laughed a little bit, before nodding. He performed Hatsu on the console and he got sucked all of sudden, startling the other players.

"Once the words 'Now Playing' appear, the next person starts," Tsezugera instructed.

Not long after that, the text 'Now Loading' changed to 'Now Playing'. Hitomi released a long sigh, before putting the ring in her finger. She looked at Killua and smiled a bit.

"See you later, then," she said.

"Yeah," he nodded.

Hitomi did the same thing that Gon did. She introduced her memory card and performed Hatsu in front of the Joystation.

She felt a bright white light shallow her, before starting to fall towards somewhere. A new world, in fantasy.

 _"I welcome myself to Greed Island,"_ she smirked.

* * *

End of the 22th chapter! I swear her Nen ability was supposed to be a little... I don't know, less lame? Either way, I'm sorry :(

Well, let's begin with the reviewers...

 **havanatitiana** **:** I'm sorry for the last chapter, that was kinda lame, but I hope you liked this one! Anyway, thanks for reviewing!

 **SoulXHunter:** Sorry to you for the same thing :( Either way, I wish you liked this chapter and thank you for leaving a review :)

 **JokeLover123** **:** Thanks for leaving a review! Let's hope you had fun in this one :)

 **SlightlyYandereMelissa** **:** I'm glad you liked that :) Thanks for reviewing and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

 **alice:** Thanks! I wish you liked this update :)

 **Mr. Kohen** **:** Thanks for the review! I wish you liked this chapter :)

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for passing by here! Hope you had fun :D

See you all later!


	23. New Game x New World x Greed Island

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 23: New Game x New World x Welcome to Greed Island**

After hearing the instructions, Hitomi went downstairs. She found herself staring at a huge prairie, of which she couldn't see the end of. Somehow, it looked much alike the real world.

Except of a feeling... She felt like more than one person were observing her.

"Hitomi!" she hear her name being called.

She turned around to find Gon, grinning widely at her. She smiled at him, making her way towards the boy.

"Hey," she said. "By any chance, do you feel being observed?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "But I can't find from where."

"Ah, that," she pointed at two ways. "There and there. Maybe we should head there after Killua arrives."

Gon stared at her, in amazement.

"How did you know?"

"I don't know, I just feel like that," she shrugged. "Surveillance takes a lot of endurance, so it's common do that from a place near a city. Because all the stamina you have to have for this task, the people usually have to swift turns. Maybe that's the reason that we can feel a lot of eyes on us."

She sat on the floor, and Gon did the same next to her. He was still thinking about it, but he just couldn't understand it completely.

"Hey, don't overdo it. You will overheat soon..." she sighed. "Anyway, did your father left you something?"

"Yeah!" he nodded happily. "He left me a message! He told me to enjoy the game."

Her face fell, but didn't say anything. That was kind of useless.

Time passed by and more people left the place. Finally, both of them stood up at the sight of Killua, who made his way to them.

"We are being watched," he said as soon as he met his friends. He pointed at two directions. "From these ways."

"Yeah, Hitomi said the same but..." Gon trailed off.

"He didn't understand a word of what I told him," she completed.

Gon just laughed nervously as the other two sighed.

"Well, if they're detected from so far away they shouldn't be that great," Killua commented.

"Maybe," Hitomi said. "But it also could be that they want us to go to either these ways. Which way should we go?"

"This way," the boys said at the same time, pointing at opposite directions.

Hitomi facepalmed, shaking her head and releasing a sigh of annoyment. The other two played Rock, Paper and Scissors. Killua ended up losing.

"You never learn, do you?" Hitomi snickered while looking at Killua.

"Damn it..." he cursed under his breath.

And like that, they departed to the way that Gon had chosen. After walking a bit, Killua conjured his book and grinned.

"So, what about your saved data?" he asked Gon. "How many cards do you start with?"

"About that, I only received a message," Gon replied.

"Really?! No hints whatsoever?" his face fell. "We have to start from scratch?"

"Yeah, Ging told be to enjoy the game," he smiled, before walking away.

"Enjoy the game on which we could have an awful death," Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Once again, nice father."

They walked chatting about the game for a few more minutes before they stopped in their tracks. A beam of light fell from the sky and it vanished. Inside it there was a boy with a book.

"If this is the prairie near the starting point then..." he said. "You guys there, is this your first time in this game?"

"Hmm, I don't know about that," Killua replied.

"You are holding a binder, then you must be a player too," Hitomi said.

"I guess so," he smirked.

Like her friends, Hitomi stood still. The only thing she was sure of was that guy wanted to take advantage of them. Maybe because they were rookies there. Maybe because they were kids.

Or maybe both.

Anyway, the boy put a card in his binder and his smirk widened.

"So you are Killua-kun, Gon-kun and Hitomi-chan," he said.

"Hey, how'd you figure out our names?" Gon asked.

"Hmm, I wonder how..."

Hitomi narrowed her eyes. He had used a card... did that meant that they could be used for fighting as well?

He then raised a card, making her snap out her thoughts.

"Trace on!" he shouted. "Attack Killua!"

"What?" Killua stepped back.

"Killua!" Hitomi and Gon shouted.

A multicolored ray of light shot from the light to Killua, who started to run away from it. However, it started to follow him.

"Idiot!" the boy shouted. "You can't run away from a spell in this game!"

 _"Spell?"_ Hitomi raised an eyebrow.

The light hit Killua, but he just stood there unscratched, looking at himself.

"Are you okay?" Gon asked, worriedly.

"What did you do to Killua?" Hitomi looked at the boy, with her red eyes.

The boy stepped back, looking at her demon-like appearance. However, that wasn't the thing that scared him the most. He looked at Killua's blood-thirsty form. An evil aura surrounded him as he made his way towards him.

"What have you done to me?" he muttered, in a scary voice.

Killua jumped to attack him, but the guy raised another card in the air.

"Return on!" he yelled at the top of his lungs. "To Masadora!"

The three kids watched at their enemy as he flew away and vanished from their sight. Hitomi sighed, returning her eyes to their natural tonality.

"So there are cards that let you use spells like that, huh?" Killua said, quietly, before smiling at his friends. "He did say something like 'spell', right? Maybe it has something to do with magic spells."

"You look too calm," Gon said.

"Of course he is. The only thing that happened was that a rainbow-like beam, which was shot from a card of a game in which the people _constantly_ told us that we could die, hit him," she said, sarcastically, but still a little worried. She then looked at Killua with a serious expression. "Just kidding. Do you feel any different?"

"I don't feel any changes right now," he shrugged. "We'll probably find out sooner or later."

That sentence took Hitomi out of guard, making her stare at her feet for a bit and walk a little slower. She released a long sigh, before stopping and giving the boy a stern look.

"You are an idiot. How can you be that calm?" she asked. "You could be seriously injured and even die. So, why?"

They both turned at her, but Gon didn't say anything. Killua on the other hand, sighed as well and looked at her in the eye.

"Even if that happens, there's nothing we can do about it," he told her, making the girl gaze at the ground. The boy smiled softly. "I'm okay, for real. Don't worry about it."

"I wasn't worried about you, stupid~" she stuck her tongue at him. "At first thought that the game would be difficult without you here, but now I realized how wrong it was. Gon and me are more than enough to pass the game with flying colors. So you can die happily now, Snow-head."

"What do you mean with that, Miss Non-Barbie Girl?" he replied annoyed, as Gon laughed nervously.

After walking a little more, Hitomi looked at Gon in amusement. He was grinning widely and she could bet that his eyes were sparkling for some reason.

"What are you that excited for?" she asked.

"It's just that I wonder now we can get a hold of cards that let us use magic like that," he said, eagerly.

"All in good time," Killua said, before pointing somewhere ahead. "We'll find something out once we get there."

The place that Killua was pointing at was a huge city. Once they arrived there, they found themselves been surrounded by a lot of people. In the entrance, there was a huge sign:

 _"Welcome to Antokiba, The City of Prizes."_

"Prizes?" Gon asked, confused. "Why is that?"

"Because of that," Hitomi replied, pointing at something with her finger.

The two boys looked at the walls, which were papered by millions of listings. In fact, they were all jobs or events, which offered prizes for them.

The three approached a large sign, which contained various events with different prizes. One of them caught Gon's attention.

"There's a Rock, Paper and Scissors Tournament for September," he commented.

"But it may not be September in the game," Killua said.

Hitomi sighed, turning around to a random guy. "Excuse me, could you tell me today's date?" she asked.

"It's September 11th," he replied in a monotone voice.

"See?" she turned again to her friends once again. "Same day."

The three boys looked at the chart and found out that the prize of the Tournament was a card called 'Sword of Truth'. They then looked around and noticed that some of the players hired by Battera were there as well, looking at the same sign that them.

"Though it's still four days away, want to give it a shot?" Gon asked.

"Of course!" Killua shouted. "If it's Rock, Paper and Scissors, then everyone will have a chance."

"That's it then," Hitomi grinned.

* * *

The three kids got hungry, so they went to a restaurant. As Killua said before, they could eat, gather information and getting prizes there, all three in one shot.

As soon as the giant plate of pasta was put in front of her, she realized how hungry she was. Not long after, the owner of the restaurant brought another two and put them in front of the other kids.

"If you eat it all within thirty minutes it will be free of change," he told them. "We'll also present you a 'Gatgida' card. Well then, begin!"

She then started to eat the huge plate, along her friends.

"Hey, Mister," Killua called. "Roughly how many people attend these monthly competitions?"

"If you have the time to talk, you're better off eating quicklier," he chuckled. "Well, it's different every month. There are times when less than ten people participate, but in September there's a chance for everyone to win, so more than one hundred people compete."

"A one in one hundred chance, huh?" Killua murmured, between bites. "By the way, how do you use magic?"

"'Magic'?" he tilted his head to a side, in confusion. "What's that?"

Killua's face fell. _"Am I going to have to ask around until I find the person who knows?"_ he thought, irritated.

"Then who is the most knowledgeable person in this city?" Gon asked.

"'Knowledgeable'? What's that?"

Hitomi was getting a little annoyed as well.

"Knowledge! To know something, for goodness sake!" she snapped, irritated. "Do you _know_ at least what a dictionary is?"

"'Dictionary'? What's that?"

"I guess no then..." she sighed.

Gon blinked at that while Killua just shook his head at her actions.

 _"Is she trying to argue with a character... for real?"_ he facepalmed.

After a bit, they finished eating. Killua was the first to do so in ten minutes, being closely followed by Hitomi with eleven minutes. Gon was the last one, eating it all in thirteen minutes. The people who worked there started to applaud them, as one of them gave the kids the three glasses of water they had asked.

"That man's lacking vocabulary, isn't he?" Gon asked.

"He is the most annoying and ignorant person in the world! How come he-?" her eyes opened. "Wait, what if he isn't even a person-?" after realizing that, she resisted the urge bang her head against the table. "Oh, dear. He wasn't real..."

"You didn't realize it until now, idiot?" Killua sighed. "I still can't believe you wasted your energy arguing with a character."

"Uh... I guess I got a little carried away," she sweatdropped. "But now that I think about it again, it was kinda obvious..."

Gon just blinked at them, confused. Killua turned around to face him and explain the situation a little bit, so he could understand.

"He's just a character in the game," he said. "Meaning, he can only answer certain questions. For all other questions, he replies 'What's that?'"

"What?" he asked. "What should we do?"

"We might have to go around the city and ask everyone."

"EH?!" he shouted in a mix of surprise and confusion. "Are there games that difficult?!"

"All RPG's are like that..." Hitomi trailed off. "Or so I think..."

"You think...?" Killua sighed, irritably.

After a while, the worker got closer to them and gave each kid the promised card. They stared at it for a little, before he started to explain.

"The '1217' on the left is the card's number. The 'F-185' is the difficulty level of obtaining it. There are ten levels and F is the third from the bottom. The number next to it is its maximum card limit."

"Let's see..." Gon said. "That means that this card is..."

"Just a crappy item," Killua's eyebrow twitched.

"It sure is..." Hitomi facepalmed, annoyed as well.

After that, they started to walk away from the shop, when the owner stopped them for doing so. They turned around to see what he wanted.

"Your pasta was certainly free but the iced soda you ordered were not," he told them. "That will be 1020 jenny."

"Oh, okay," Killua took his money out of his pocket and handed it to them. "Here, give me change for 10,000 jenny."

"What's that?" he asked, as he hold a card for them to see. It had money drawn on it.

Killua's face fell. Hitomi shook her head while Gon blinked in confusion.

"On this island you can only use this kind of money!" he stretched his hand at them. "I demand 1020 jenny in a valid card."

And like that, they ended up washing dishes. Through that experience, they learned that they could earn money by exchanging cards in the Trade Shop for money. After they work was finished, the worked waved at them while they walked away.

"Damn it," Killua cursed under his breath. "If we had just exchanged the 'Gargida' for money then we wouldn't have had to wash those dishes..."

 _"How do you think you could have exchanged the card before we even received it?"_ Hitomi sighed, but keep that to herself.

"But if we didn't wash the dishes, he might not have given us the information," Gon grinned.

"It's common for games to have you do a certain task in order to trigger another event," Killua smiled.

"That's why I hate games-" Hitomi was about to say, whining.

 ** _BOOM!_**

All the people in the streets looked at the direction of the explosion. The three kids found themselves in front of a crowd, so they did their best to look what was in the middle.

There was a man, with a huge hole in his stomach, from where blood poured and tainted the floor in a disgusting way. They soon realized that he was the first one who passed Tsezugera's Exam.

"Hey," Killua asked a character. "What happened?"

"His body just exploded all of sudden," he replied. "It went 'BOOM!' from inside him!"

Hitomi just stared at the dead body.

"It's only been a few hours since we started the game and someone died already," she gulped. "I have the feeling we are the next ones."

Killua and Gon didn't say anything about that.

 _"This is not a game, it's a battle field,"_ Hitomi looked at Gon. _"Did Gon's dad created it?... More importantly, he made his own son play it? Oh... he sure loves him..."_

Something snapped the girl out of her thoughts. A light shone in the dead guy body and he disappeared not long after that.

"He disappeared..." Gon mumbled.

"He's returned to the real world," Killua explained, before looking at his friends with a serious expression. "Game over... In other words, he's dead."

"Hey, Killua, could the spell cast on you earlier...?" the boy trailed off.

Hitomi frowned, as she looked at the place where the dead body was. She imagined Killua's bloody body lying in its place, lifeless. The image repeated again and again in her mind, and she swore that she was going to become insane if it continued like that.

And before she realized it, her feet started to move on their own.

"Where are you going?" Gon asked.

"I'm going to look for who casted the spell," Hitomi replied, angrily. "That dread-guy is now a dead-guy."

"But if you go you'll be a dead-idiot!" Killua argued, grabbing her shoulder. "You have no spells or whatever either!"

"I will get killed then!" she shook her shoulder to get free from the boy and turned around to face him. "I refuse to let a friend die! At least not again!"

Gon looked at both of them, but didn't find the correct words for a situation like that. The other two, on the other hand, just stayed there, glaring at each other.

Then a man walked and stood behind them.

"Rest assured," he said, making the kids turn around to face him. "Such a spell doesn't belong to this game."

Hitomi released a sigh. _"At least Killua's stomach won't suddenly explode and splash blood and organs to us..."_ she narrowed her eyes. _"But..."_

"That was done with Nen, by some other player," he continued.

"Does that mean that players are killing each other?" Killua asked.

Gon gulped at the thought.

"It's called player hunting. I bet you've heard that there are limits to each card in this game, right?" he explained. "The rarer the card, the less chance you'll obtain it as the number of players increases."

"So, the fewer the players, the higher the chances," Hitomi commented.

"Yes. And because of that, extreme players had started appearing," the man nodded. "People who've just entered to the game are more likely to be the target. We're the opposite; we travel in number and never shed blood. How about that? Care to join us? There's a way that will definitely let you clear the game."

The three kids just stared at him, and he promised to tell them about the spell casted in Killua. Because of that, they agreed to follow him.

They arrived at a place. There were a few players hired by Battera, including the twin-tailed girl. In the middle, there was a man with glasses.

"First off, let's address what you guys are most worried about right now," the guy with glasses said. "His death wasn't caused by a spell. In this game, there are no spell cards that can hurt or kill anyone. Therefore, there's no chance of being injured or killed by a spell."

"Yeah, I think we got that," Hitomi said, feeling a little impatient, "What is a spell card anyway?"

"There are forty kinds of them, varying from attack to moviment to defense and much more," he explained, before looking at Killua. "The one that cast on you belongs to the survey attack. It was either 'Trace' or 'Adhesion'. That spell gathers information about the person it's cast on, such as your current position or what kind of cards you have."

Killua remembered that the man had, indeed, said 'Trace on', so the glasses-guy was right.

"There are people that keep a constant lookout around and starting point to cast these spell on new players. These guys would then appear the instant you obtain a valuable card and try to take it from you by force. In the worse case, you'll lose your life."

 _"Remembering that we can die here..."_ Hitomi rolled her eyes, _"... again."_

"The one who was killed recently wasn't one of them. They're the most extreme kind of player hunters," he said. "They choose a target beforehand and kill that person without being noticed. From the different ways the people are killed and the conditions of the corpses we've concluded there are at least four people who do this. The person who killed him is one of them. Because of the possible bombing style of killing, we call him the Bomber."

"Oh, that was original," Hitomi said, sarcastically.

Killua raised an eyebrow at her, and she grinned.

They told them about the violence of the game for a bit more, before asking them if they wanted to join them and promised to undo the spells cast in them. Puhat agreed, and Abengane did the same not long after that.

"How about you, guys?" they asked the trio.

Gon gazed at his feet for a little.

"Killua, Hitomi, I'm sorry," he murmured, making them look at him. The boy then looked at the men. "No, thanks. I'll play on my own."

Gon then walked away. Killua and Hitomi looked at each other for a second, before nodding. The boy turned to the men and grinned.

"The leader said he won't, so I'll pass too," he said, before following Gon.

"Hey, who made him the leader?" she complained, before looking at the men. "Either way, I'll pass too. I feel this group-thing like cheating. Cheats makes the game boring."

After that, she ran to catch with her friends. They all walked for hours, in silence, giving Hitomi a feeling of uneasiness. Not able to bear it anymore, Hitomi stopped walking.

"That's enough with the silence! It's really annoying!" she shouted, before looking at Gon. "What the hell is wrong with you, Gon? Spit it out already!"

He stared at her for a few seconds, before scratching the back of his neck.

"I'm sorry, guys," he spoke for the first time in a while. "I just couldn't stand them any longer."

"I don't get what are you sorry for," Killua sighed.

"Because, now you'll still have that spell that was cast on you for a while longer, Killua," Gon said.

"It doesn't matter, it's not poisonous or anything," he assured.

"Anyway," Hitomi said. "What's with the short fuss back there? You looked angry."

Gon looked at the ground once again.

"Because they called the game that Ging made a massacre. They only look at the negative aspects," he said. "I thought that we should just enjoy the game, like Ging told us to. It's true that some players died, but what's scary is not the game itself, but the player's mentality."

"You think so? I think that's okay," Killua said, making his friends look at him like he was nuts. "That's why is an exclusive game for Hunters, right?" Gon looked down. "Hold on, killing is all wrong, I agree with you there. But let's say, if each player puts out a card and battles with a set rule whereby the winner gets the loser's cards. How about that?"

"I see the point," Hitomi smiled. "It's no different that we take the cards, what's different is that we're not using brute force, right?" he glanced at Killua. "Even the guy who casted the spell on Killua was playing fairly."

Gon nodded, still a little upset. The other boy punched him lightly in his chest.

"Well, anyway, let's leave them be and enjoy this game a little more," Killua turned around, placing his arms behind his head, starting to walk away.

"Sure thing," Hitomi smirked, walking beside him.

Gon nodded again, this time smiling as always.

"Killua, Hitomi," he called, making them stop in their tracks and look at him. "Thank you. I'm really happy that you guys are here with me. No... I'm just really fortunate that I met you!"

They stood there, speechless. Not long after that, Hitomi smiled at him, while Killua just turned around, blushing a little.

"Stop it, idiot!" he said. "It's embarrassing."

"Why?" he stood beside them. "That's what I really think!"

Hitomi laughed a bit and rested her arms in her friends' shoulders. Her grin widened.

"Don't mind him, Gon, he is just shy," she said, and he glared at her. "I can say the same, Gon. I'm very happy to have met you..." she glanced at Killua. "Both of you."

Hitomi ruffled the boys' hairs and started to run beside Gon. Not too far from them, Killua was following them with a tiny smile in his features.

 _"It's just the opposite, guys,"_ he thought. _"It's me... Gon... Hitomi... I'm really glad that I met you two."_

But there was something that they didn't know. Meters behind them, the girl from before was staring at them.

"I see... That's why he was angry. Nonetheless, isn't that just sweet? A young kid's true friendship..." she grinned evilly. "It's kinda itching me to destroy it."

* * *

That night, the girl couldn't sleep.

Hitomi sighed, still looking at the sky. Even though she knew that it was a game, the stars looked real. Their shine and beautifulness were exactly like they used to be back in her world.

How much had passed since she had seen such a wonderful night sky? She had no idea.

"Can't sleep?" a voice next to her said.

She looked beside her to see Killua, wide awake as well.

"I'm not as lucky as Gon," she glanced at Gon, who was snoring next to them.

"He sure is..." he commented, chuckling a little bit.

They stayed in silence again, but not and an unpleasant one though. It was kind of comforting.

"Can I ask you something?" he asked, almost in a whisper.

"Hm?" she looked at him, in curiosity.

Silence again. The boy looked at the ground for a minute or so.

"Back then," Killua said after a while, still a little unsure. "Were you worried... about me?"

She blinked a few times at him, with a reddish tint in her cheeks. "Well, yeah," she replied, looking away.

"May I ask... why?"

"Why do you think, moron? You are my friend, Killua," Hitomi smiled fondly at him. "I'd never let a friend die."

Killua couldn't help but blush a little at her warm smile.

"Well, I think I should get some sleep," she said. "You should too."

After that, she turned around and some minutes after, she was asleep. Killua just stared her back for a little, with a slight smile in his face.

"You look cute together," a voice behind him said, making Killua flinch. "So, you like Hitomi, don't you?"

He turned around to see Gon, grinning at him. His eyebrow twitched when he realized that he was overhearing the conversation.

"Of course I do," he tried to play dumb. "She is my friend, like you are."

"You know I don't mean that way. I mean like _like_ ," Gon poked his cheek. "So, you have a crush~?"

"I don't!" he yelled, in embarrassment.

Or at least, he wasn't going to admit it that easily.

There was a moment of silence and Gon started laughing hard. Killua frowned in a pouty way, glaring at him in confusion.

"Killua," he chuckled.

"What?" the boy was getting really annoyed.

"Your face is all red."

* * *

Since Hitomi was a lazy person, she didn't bother to participate in the tournament. Killua was the one who won, thanks to his technique to counterattack Gon's one.

"Hey," Gon said, cheerfully. "Let's go somewhere other than Antokiba already."

"You are right..." Killua commented. "We've entered the contest for a few days, but we still haven't gotten many good cards, so... In the end, the only card we got for the designated pocket was The Sword of Truth."

Hitomi looked around and found some other players observing them. It was obvious that they wanted to steal that card. The boys noticed as well, so the three kids walked away.

"Can they be a little more obvious?" Hitomi sighed, as they noticed players following them.

"I wish everyone was as easy to spot as they are," Killua agreed.

"But we can't afford to let our guard down," Gon said. "Because even if our opponent is super weak, we can't do anything if they use spell cards, right?"

Killua smirked. "That many not be the case," he said. "The cards that steal cards... I kinda understand how they work. If everything goes well, we'll be able to prevent it without using spell cards ourselves."

"Wow," Hitomi teased. "As I expected from such a game maniac like you."

"I'm telling you, I'm not maniac!" he shouted, annoyed. "I'm just normal!"

"If you say so..." she rolled her eyes.

They talked for awhile and designated a plan. Right after that, a man jumped out from his hiding spot.

"Hold it! You three kids over there!" he shouted. They turned around. "Hand over The Sword of Truth! If you listen to what I say, I won't harm you!"

They gave him a long look.

"That's all?" Hitomi grinned, before teasing. "Oh, no! I'm very scared! That old man wants to harm us!"

"No way," Killua said. "Idiot."

The comment hit the man really hard. He stood there, frozen, for a while and the kids started to walk away.

"Wait!" he shouted again as he took of his book. The other did the same. "That's all bluff! I already know that you three are beginners."

"Oh man!" Hitomi joked. "We're doomed!"

"Thief on!" he shouted. "Attack Killua! Steal The Sword of Truth!"

However, nothing happened. The card just disappeared into the thin air.

"You don't have to put a card into the designated pockets," Killua smirked. "Even if it's a designated card, old man."

"So you put it in your free pocket!" his face fell.

And like that, he fell into his knees. Another player came out, saying that he had already listened to their conversation.

"Pick Pocket on! Attack Killua!" he shouted, before the card vanished as well.

"The card that I won doesn't necessarily have to be placed in my binder," Killua explained, and Gon grinned.

"Idiot! I have more Pick Pocket cards!" he replied, taking another card. "Pick Pocket on! Attack Gon!"

A beam of light directed to Gon and came back to the card. He looked at it, just to see that he had only stolen a rock.

"Yeah, it's the rock I picked up in the prairie," Gon's grin widened.

"Come to think of it, you did pick up a lot of things on the way here," Killua commented.

Another man came up, since the other was cursing under his breath.

"I see... so you have no moves left? In that case, leave it to me," he smirked. "By using Sight Vision, I've already sure that neither Killua's binder nor Gon's contain The Sword of Truth. Also, I've made sure that it is in Hitomi's free pocket using Steal," he took off a card. "Then, I can obtain the card for sure using this card. With Rob I can steal any card I choose from any of my opponent's pockets."

Hitomi smirked.

"Rob on!" he shouted. "Attack Hito-!"

Before he could even finish his sentence, the card in his hand was stolen. Hitomi grinned, moving the card around.

"Weren't you training? You weren't able to follow me with your eyes, right?" she sighed, before breaking the card much in the man's surprise.

"You're an amateur, right?" Killua commented. "She's a professional Hunter. You rely greatly on spell cards, so I'm certain that your spell card will be taken from you before you can cast the spell."

The girl grinned, before walking towards the boys. The man raised a card, and they three glared at him before he could do anything else.

"That method will only work on players that are weaker that you are," he told them. "There are millions of players here that are stronger than you are! And most of them are not even able to get out the game even though they are itching to do so!"

And the kids walked away.

"Why did you broke the card?" Gon asked the girl. "You could have keep it."

"Yeah, but that man was annoying the hell out of me," she said, before grinning. "Also, the look on his face at that time was pretty amusing!"

"That was pretty stupid," Killua shook his head. "Either way, he was right at that time. If we aren't stronger than our opponents are, then it will be impossible to steal their card before they cast it on us."

"Eventually we'll have to buy spell cards for defense..." Gon commented.

"Sure thing..." she sighed. "What a hassle..."

Right after she said that, a lot of players surrounded them, holding books. They were experienced players, sure thing.

They stole The Sword of Truth little after that.

* * *

"Welcome," the man said.

The kids kept their distance. To be honest, that guy was a little creepy to be just a character in the game. Either way, they asked for the location of the next city, Masadora.

"If you want to know the location of Masadora, it'll cost you three thousand jenny."

"That's too much!" Killua complained. "Bring the price down a little, will you?! We came here many times-!"

"It'll cost you three thousand jenny," he repeated.

Reluctantly, Killua gave him the money. Hitomi sighed.

 _"As far as I remember, he was the one to tease me about arguing to a character..."_ she sweatdropped.

When the man received the money, he took it.

"From this city you'll have to go over this mountain and if you go south about 80 km, then you'll see a lake," he said. "And if you follow that lake northwest, then you should get to Masadora. There will be two small cities along your route, so you should rest there."

"If it's just 80 km, then we'll get there in a day, right?" Killua smiled at his friends, who nodded.

"That's if you make it there alive," the man told them with a severe tone. "There's a bandit hideout in the mountains, and they'll take everything, even clothes. Even if you are lucky to get past them, once you get past the mountains there will be many monsters."

And they walked away, closing the door behind themselves.

"Monsters!" Gon exclaimed.

"I wanna kick some bandit's ass right now!" Hitomi cheered.

"Yeah!" Killua grinned. "This is starting to sound like an RPG!"

Gon started to run, Killua and Hitomi close following him. After a while, they heard a girly voice asking them to stop, so they turned around.

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched at the sight of the girl from before, the one with twintails.

"Umm..." she trailed off, looking away. She then looked at them with watering eyes. "W-Will you let me join you?"

"Eh?" the trio blinked at the girl.

She walked closer to them and smiled cutely.

"Please?" she asked.

"Ah, sorry!" Killua said, smiling in a cat-like way. "That's not possible."

"What?" she stepped back, dramatically. "W-Why?"

"Because you'd be in our way," he replied, with a deadpan expression.

A vein popped up in the girl's head. _"This brat, saying something so rude! Does he even know how many more years I lived compared to him? If I get just a little serious, I can finish you off easily with one hand!"_ she thought. _"That's it! I was just going to stir up your friendship a little bit, but now I'm going to screw it up until it's unfixable!"_

"Bye-bye," Hitomi waved the back of her hand at her, as she walked away with her friends.

"Please wait!" she returned to her good-girl act. "I'll try my best not to get in your way so..." they didn't pay her attention. "Hey, you! Wait! You-! Please wait!"

* * *

End of chapter 23!

 **SoulXHunter:** Thank you a lot for reviewing! I hope you liked it!

 **kri:** Thanks for the review! The dodgeball game won't appear until another couple of chapters... Anyway, I wish you enjoyed this chapter!

 **JokeLover123:** Sorry if I confused you last chapter, but her lame Hatsu will be explained next chapter further. Thank you for leaving a review and I hope you enjoyed this one :)

 **alice:** Thanks! I wish you liked it :)

 **Elisablackcat** **:** I'm sorry if I dissapointed you with it :( Thank you for reviewing and I wish you liked this chapter :D

 **Silent Readers:** Thank you all for paying this fic a visit! Let's just hope you had fun :)

Well, see you all later!


	24. True Face x Scissors x Change of Plans!

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 24: Biscuit's True Face x Deadly Scissors x Change of Plans!**

The three kids had been running through the forest for a long time now, but something wasn't really okay. That girl was the problem, because she was still following them and.. Man! She was really insistent.

"What should we do with _that_?" Hitomi asked, glancing at her.

"Let her be," Killua said. "We'll get rid of her in the commotion when the bandits come out."

"Wouldn't that be a little too cruel?" Gon raised an eyebrow.

"It was her choice, so it's her own fault," Hitomi said. "Besides, Elf-san said that she passed the exam. She'll do just fine."

"When the situation gets tough she can at least run away," Killua added.

"You're right."

They started to run away, in a pretty high speed. The thing that surprised them though was that she was keeping up with them without even dropping a drop of sweat.

" _Could she be faking it?"_ Hitomi thought. " _No, there's no way."_

All of sudden, they had to stop in their tracka. Behind the trees, there were a handful amount of people hiding from them. Feeling a little excited, the three kids slid in fighting stances.

"Please help us!" they said, kneading in front of them. "We beg you!"

The trio blinked and looked at each other.

"It isn't a trap... is it?" Hitomi asked.

The bandits guided them to their house and they sat down next to a sick little boy, who was resting in bed. The girl who was following them sat down text to a corner, in silence.

"It's the island's endemic disease. You start with a slight fever, but then your temperature slowly rises. In the end, it leads to death," one of them said, before coughing. "The only cure is to control the fever with medication, but the medication only works for approximately one week. And when the medication's effect fades away the fever starts again... This medication is very expensive leaving us penniless. Everyone had been affected already and now we can't even perform our jobs as bandits properly."

"Hey," Hitomi whispered to Killua. "Does thieving count as a job?"

"I think that the one who wrote the scripts didn't think it though," he replied with a sigh.

"If this keeps up this child will die in two or three days!" the man said.

"Is there any way you can kindly give us some money?" a woman cried.

The three kids looked at each other.

"This is also game language, right?" Gon said. "What are they trying to say?"

"It means that if we give them money, they'll give us a special item or information," Killua replied.

"Well, then," Hitomi turned to the woman. "How much would you need?"

"We've gathered as much as we can from the village but we still need about 80,000 jenny more!"

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched. That was all the money they had.

"They probably automatically know how much money we have," Killua said, a little irritated.

"Definitely a trap," Hitomi said. "We can't trust them."

"How can you be that sure?" Gon said. "I think we should do as Killua says. He is more experienced in this field."

Killua smirked at her and she scoffed, looking away.

"Um... if it's 80,000 jenny I suppose I could-" the girl behind them said.

"We're fine," Killua cut her off. "Will you stay quiet for the time being?"

The girl looked pissed off for an instance, but she composed herself right away.

"Why don't you let her?" Hitomi asked. "She would have any use for us if she did."

"No way," Killua replied. "If they give us a item, they will give it to her instead."

"That's why I'm telling you there won't be any item!"

However, her face fell when she saw Gon giving the money they had to the thieves. She facepalmed at his action.

But then, the child started to cough and he mumbled something about being cold. His father started to cry again.

"This is bad! If his body gets completely cold, this child will definitely die overnight," he shouted. "If there were some children's clothing around..."

They all glanced at the kids, before starting to cough again.

"Umm..." Gon said. "If you would like to, please use our clothing..."

"Is it really okay?"

Gon and Killua took off their jackets and stared at Hitomi, who raised an eyebrow.

"Got it, got it..." she murmured in irritation, taking her hoodie off. Beneath it, she just had a cream-coloured t-shirt.

And then, they gave it to the bandits.

"You three are like angels!" he exclaimed.

"I can't even find the words to say how much we appreciate your kindness," other bandit tearfully said.

"Don't thank us..." Killua scratched the back of his head, before thinking. " _Give us some information or items!"_

But in the end, nothing happened.

* * *

"Such a wonderful help!" Hitomi shouted, sarcastically. "We are without clothes and money now! Thanks, Killua!"

"Shut up, it doesn't matter now!" Killua said, annoyed, with a sigh.

"Yeah, it doesn't matter..." she rolled her eyes. "Of course..."

They started to run after that.

"Well, if we go down the mountain we'll finally find some monsters," Killua said.

"Yeah, beat the monsters," Gon grinned. "Then turn them into cards and we sell them at the trade shop we should be make tons of money!"

"And then we can see what you can do against them, guys!" Hitomi exclaimed.

"I'm going to see the results of your so-called training!" Gon exclaimed.

"Same here!" Killua smirked.

As soon as they arrived there, a lot of giant cyclops appeared from nowhere. The three kids jumped back when one of them tried to attack with a big club.

"You can hurt somebody with that!" Hitomi shouted, before avoiding another hit. "Is that so? You'll regret it!"

She jumped and kicked him in his only eye. To her surprise, it became a card. She looked around just to see that Killua had done the same thing.

"Gon!" Killua shouted. "Aim for the eye!"

And like that, they defeated every cyclop there. Just when they were going to make their way to Masadora, they found a _huge_ monster. Hitomi was about to do something to, at least, _try_ to fight it, but Gon and Killua grabbed her wrists and dragged her along in a run-away.

Unknown to them, the girl from before was watching their fights. She was getting more irritated every time they tried to fight with a monster because of their lack of thinking over things. They just couldn't analyze their enemies deeply.

Then an armor appeared of nowhere and the kids slid into fighting stances. That was whrn she found herself unable to hold it anymore.

"GYO!" she shouted.

The three turned around, just to see her standing in a clif.

"Hey, don't look away!" she told them, making the kids look at the monster again. "Gyo! Can you use it or not?"

"We can, but we forgot about it," Killua commented.

"Doesn't she seem completely different from a little while ago?" Gon said.

"Showing her true colors, huh?" Hitomi smirked.

As they were told, they used Gyo and realized that the armor was just a puppet. Killua and Hitomi distracted the armor and Gon followed the Nen trail just to find a little mouse, which transformed into a card as soon as the boy looked at it.

The girl then jumped off the rock in where she was standing and stood in front of them.

"So you can use Gyo," she said. "Why didn't you use it until I told you to? I've been watching you the whole time. You haven't used it even once, have you?"

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched. " _She had been following us... all the time?"_ she thought.

"Well... yeah... I guess," Killua murmured.

"So you forgot about it," she concluded, making the kids laugh nervously.

She then raised a finger, and they waited for her to say something for a while, before she snapped.

"What are you standing around for?! GYO!" they did as they were told. "What did you see?"

"Number one," they said at the same time.

"Good. From now on, whenever I put up my finger, use Gyo," she declared. "Say what you see with a big voice and whenever you feel something strange, always use Gyo. Got it?"

Gon blinked while Killua and Hitomi raised their eyebrows.

"From now on I'll coach you guys," she pointed at herself. "I'll charge no fee for it. In exchange I'll train you extremely hard, so be prepared for it."

"What?" Hitomi exclaimed.

"Stop joking around!" Killua said, irritated. "What exactly do you-?!"

The girl raised again her finger.

"Number five," Gon said eagerly while Hitomi did the same, in a rather enthusiastic manner.

"Correct!" she replied, before pointing at Killua. "You! Give me 200 push-ups!"

"Eh?" that was the boy's reaction.

"It's a punishment. Whoever is slow will be punished!" she smiled evilly. She then started to poke Killua in his forehead. "Hurry up!"

"What the hell?!" he snapped. "Don't mess around!"

The girl then used her fist and made a huge crater in the rock. Hitomi whistled at the sight of it and looked at Killua.

"I highly recommend you to stop annoying her or your face will get like... well, _that,_ " she said. "She is kinda scary."

The other two just stared at her in disbelief.

"I was a Pro Hunter long before you guys were born!" she told them.

"Wait... Just..." Hitomi trailed off. "How old are you?"

"I'm fifty-seven years old," she grinned, proudly.

They all blinked, staring at her, not being able to believe what she was saying right now.

"EH?" Gon and Hitomi said at the same time.

"You're an old hag!" Killua exclaimed.

 _ **SMACK!**_

It wasn't a wise option, because seconds later the boy was flying through the air because 'the girl's' punch.

" _So she is a baby-faced old scary stalker?"_ Hitomi thought. " _Oh my god. My brain will explode after today..."_

"It's been forty years since I learned Nen," she continued. "I've gotten quite a bit stronger than you guys, and I'm saying that I'll coach you, so gratefully take my help."

"So you don't care if we want help?" Killua asked, getting up from the floor. "First off, who the hell are you?"

"Oh, yeah! I haven't introduced myself yet," she smiled. "I'm Biscuit Krueger. I don't like it all formal so call me Bisky. In exchange for teaching you, you will do everything I tell you."

"I'm saying that we won't ask for your help or be taught by you! We're not desperate enough to be taught by someone we don't know," he turned at his friends. "Gon, Hitomi, say something to her too."

"Yeah, we've got Wing-san too..." Gon commented.

"That's right, we still have Glasses-san," Hitomi nodded. "We have a proper instructor, so it's ok."

"Wing and glasses? Could it be weakling Wing?" Biscuit said, putting a hand in her chin. "The kid with glasses and bed head, right? Who won't fix his clothes no matter how many times you tell him?"

The kids gaped in disbelief.

"You know him?" Gon exclaimed.

"Of course I do! Wing is one of my students... I'm surprised he's an instructor! Time sure flies by..." she shook her head. "Oh yeah, for you guys I'm your instructor's instructor. So it's appropriate for you to learn for me."

"I guess you have the right," Killua smirked. "That is if that story is true."

Biscuit then showed them a card from her binder and they recognized it. It was the same monster they tried to fight a while ago but couldn't beat. It was a rank D.

"The fact that you guys can't get this card isn't the problem. The problem is that there are lots of people that can get it easily," she explained. "There are definitely tons of people that are stronger than you are. And if some of them are evil players and you encountered them right now, you guys would definitely die. Can you say that you aren't desperate?"

They didn't reply. Nothing they could say could've proven Biscuit wrong. The girl noticed something and her expression became serious all of sudden. She calmly sat down and told the boys to do the same thing.

"Pretend we're chatting," she instructed as soon as they sat down. "There's an enemy behind me."

They did their best to keep their cool after knowing that.

"How can you say this that calmly?" Hitomi said, looking around. "How did you-?"

"Don't try to detect him, or he'll notice your anxiety," Biscuit instructed, making they all look directly at her eyes. "Say something."

"It's amazing that you were able to get your hands on that card!" Gon said loudly, pretending to be chatting.

"Sure thing!" Hitomi played along. "And here I thought that you were an useless girly girl!"

Killua faked a laugh, before turning serious again. He looked at Biscuit.

"Hey, how did you notice?" he asked.

"His bloodlust," she explained. "The enemy wants to kill us."

" _And then again, she is saying things like this with a straight face..."_ Hitomi sweatdropped. " _Like it's the most common thing in the world."_

"Judging by the feeling of bloodlust that seeped out, I'm guessing that the enemy lowered his guard because we look like four kids," Biscuit continued. "But be careful, the enemy is quite experienced."

"If he lowered his guard, doesn't that mean he's weak?" Killua asked.

"To tell you the truth, there are many young Nen-users out there, but only a handful are able to use it skillfully in battle. All veterans learn this through experience. Our enemy has a lot of experience, so he lowered his guard after seeing us but he quickly tightened up again."

"Then, what are we supposed to do?" Hitomi asked.

"What do you think?"

"I think the four of us should travel together," Gon said.

Killua and Hitomi nodded, agreeing with the boy's idea.

"Your reason?" Biscuit asked.

"He probably tightened his guard right away because there are four of us," he explained. "So, if we move together, I don't think the enemy will act carelessly."

"Indeed, you are correct," she nodded. "But we'll intentionally react differently. If I go alone while you three stick together the enemy will certainly come after me. I'll head south, while you three go north. Keep your emotions in check and walk naturally for about 500 meters."

"Until that tall stone pinnacle, right?" Hitomi asked, looking at it. "Then we come back using Zetsu, am I wrong?"

"That's it," Biscuit nodded.

"Okay," Killua smirked. "So this will be a double pursuit-!"

 _ **SLAP!**_

When Hitomi realized that happened, Killua's left cheek was red. Biscuit had her palm opened, so she supposed that she had just slap him across his face. Hitomi and Gon blinked, confused at the scene.

" _When did she-?"_ she thought.

"If you're going to remain that way, fine!" Biscuit stood up, pretending to be angry. "I can't stand this anymore! Bye-bye!"

Killua's eyebrow twitched, before playing along. "Yeah, go! Leave! It'll much better that way!" he shouted. "See you!"

"Idiot!" she shouted back.

After that, she walked away. Hitomi sighed, before standing up as well, being followed by Killua. She looked at Gon, who was still blinking.

"Let's go, Gon," she called.

"Oh, it was all an act," he realized, before standing up as well.

And like that, they started to walk away.

"That girl is amazing," Killua commented. "I was keeping alert, so we could move instantly if something had happened. But I didn't notice what she did to me until my cheek started to hurt."

The other two stared at him for a while, still serious.

"Well," Hitomi commented. "For a hag, she is pretty fast."

* * *

They arrived a little after at the place where they had to met Biscuit and hide behind the rocks. However, they just saw the man - Binolt - being thrown upwards and collide with the ground.

"Well then," she turned to their hiding spot. "I know you guys are there, come on out!"

"You knew?" Hitomi whined as they three came out the rocks. "So boring..."

They stood in front of the girl, who was totally unscratched, and looked at Binolt. He was unconscious in the ground, injured. It was as clear as water that Biscuit was far superior to him.

"Were you able to see the movements clearly from the battle just now?" she asked.

"Starting from when the enemy was upside-down in mid air," Gon replied.

"I see..." she put a hand in her chin. "If he was a game character, I would've been able to turn him into a card. The difficulty level of obtaining it would have been about D-level. If it had been you three you might've gamed over by now."

"Bisky-san is-" Gon started.

"Just Bisky is good," she smiled, before clapping her hands together. "If you really insist attaching a suffix, just call me Bisky-chama!"

"I think I'll go with Bisky only," Hitomi mumbled, sweatdropping.

She knew she couldn't say anything rude to her or...

"Old hag would be just as good..." Killua commented.

 _ **SMACK!**_

Or that.

Killua was thrown in the air because of his comment, as the Kuruta-girl supposed he would. She, on the other hand, wasn't really interested on becoming a bird to fly... and land in a painfully way.

"Bisky, why did you come here?" Gon asked.

"Well, of course I'm here to clear the game and obtain my reward, but my other reason is for jewels. I hear that here there are two rare jewels and that one of them could only be found here," she said. "The unique one is my main goal, designated pocket number 81, the Blue Planet. I also thought I could have the other one for a bonus. Designated pocket number 2, the Scarlet Eyes."

The three of them gaped at it in surprise. Hitomi lowered her head, her eyes sparkling in scarlet and trying to hold herself back. The other two looked at the girl, with worry all written in their faces.

" _Did she say-?"_ Hitomi thought.

Biscuit didn't seem to notice it though.

"The card are real eyes, the only real object brought to the game to be transformed into a card. It was a little later than the game was made though. Like five years ago," she went on. "I wonder who was the one crazy enough to bring eyes to the game-"

She shut up at the sight of Hitomi's red eyes and opened her own. She then realized that she was in front of someone she didn't expected...

She was a Kuruta.

"Oh my god, you are-?" she asked, making Hitomi nod. "I thought that they were all dead."

"We're not," she replied dryly. "Not me nor my brother at least."

They stayed in quietness for a long while more and Biscuit knew that she shouldn't press Hitomi further. To break the silence, she changed the topic.

"How about you?" she asked them. "Why are you here for?"

"Our objective is also to clear the game, but-" Killua trailed off.

"To tell you the truth, this game was made by my father and his friends," Gon replied. "I've been looking for him and came here in hopes of finding some kind of clue."

"But it ended up being in vain," Hitomi chuckled, her eyes violet again, returning to her old self. "He just told you to have fun."

"It isn't!" Gon pouted, before turning to Biscuit with a serious expression. "His name is Ging Freecss, do you know him?"

"Ging? Of course I know him! He's famous!" she smiled. "I see, so he's your father! Unfortunately, I don't know anything that might help you find him. But Netero claimed that with his ability, he'd be one of the top five Nen users in the world."

Hitomi stared at Gon for a bit. Was his father that strong?

"If it's possible to put you jewel hunt on hold, could you please teach us Nen?" he asked her.

"I've been telling you that I would!" she grinned. "Just beware that I won't be as easy as Wing. Any objections?"

"No," the trio said.

"Okay, then let's get started."

She looked at a coughing Binolt, who was awake and trying to get up from the floor. Biscuit made her way to him and he looked up to her.

"I'm giving you a chance by avoiding these three's attacks for two weeks," she told him. "If you succeed, then I'll let you go. If you get hit and faint or become unable to stand on your own two feet then I'll kill you."

"So all I have to do is avoid being hit, right?" he said, pushing himself into a sitting position. Biscuit nodded. "It doesn't matter what happens to them, all I have to do is not get hit."

"That's correct. However, there's one rule. You're not leaving this area surrounded by rocks. If you break the rule, you fail and in doing so... I'll kill you," she looked around and then to the kids. "You three can't leave either. If you leave this area or fail to take him down within two months, then I'll punish you."

After that, Biscuit left. The kids left their bags in a side and looked at Binolt with fierce eyes. He, on the other hand, kneeled down on the floor.

"What are you standing around for?" Biscuit asked from above. "He is trying to recover from his injuries. Are you going to let him do that?!"

Killua tried to attack him from behind, but Binolt was quicker. With his scissors, he managed to leave a scratch in his cheek, missing his eye for an inch.

Hitomi walked around a little bit, as Gon tried to approach him, who had to step back before the scissor could touch his face. She tried to do the same, but had to duck to avoid getting a cut in the middle of her face. She leaped and stood back.

" _Should I use that?"_ Hitomi thought, turning her eyes scarlet for less than a second. " _No. With an opponent like that, it would be really dangerous."_

"Guys, let's go for an endurance battle," Killua snapped her out of her thoughts. He picked up some rocks from the floor. "You two rest first. I'll keep attacking him with these while I keep an eye on him. Let's switch every six hours."

"Rocks, huh?" Gon smiled, getting closer to a big rock. "We can use that idea."

He stood in front of it and gathered Nen in his fist, and Hitomi supposed that was his Ultimate Technique. He then punched it and it smashed into smaller pieces.

They used them as a shield, making Binolt's scissors useless since they couldn't cut through a rock of that size. Despite not being able to hit him, they managed to tire the man out.

" _As I thought... even though Binolt is injured, they are starting to push him back on the first day. Their movement's aren't too bad at their maximum potential, they realize that their lives are on the line. They're finally able to pull out their maximum ability by waltzing with death. These three are..."_ Biscuit thought, before looking at Gon. " _Raw ore! You can see his strong will in his eyes. An almost infinite amount of potential. A raw gem that can be polished through training. He's just like a Diamond!"_

She then glanced at the other two kids, who were still fighting. She focused in Killua first.

" _Cold, quiet blue... the Cornflower Blue that ranks above all diamonds. It's the rare color of a legendary stone. That boy is exactly that! A mesmerizing color which can achieve near immortality by neutralizing heat. He's just like a Sapphire!"_ she then looked at Hitomi. " _Fiery, burning red. An intense color that shows passion and puts itself above other gems in a unique way. A red shade that could put whoever who looks at it in flames just by a glance. She's just like a Ruby!"_

Biscuit just couldn't wipe the grin off her face at the thought of it, as she hold both of her hands together, close to her chest.

" _Oh my! Why do unpolished things always make my heart flutter?!"_ she yelled in her head, her eyes sparkling in excitement. " _And I'll training them!"_

On the other hand, Binolt got unpleasantly surprised at the sight of the rock blockade the kids had made. Hitomi, without being seen by him stood in a rock, and got closer to his ear.

"Over here," she said in a playful tone.

He tried to attack her, and she leaped to stood meters behind. Thanks to the distraction, Killua used the chance to jump off his hiding spot to hit him. However, he stepped back to avoid being cut and Gon smashed the rock behind him. The pieces collided with Binolt, who guarded his face with his arms.

Binolt fell into the floor and Killua grabbed his shoulder with his hand, curling the other into a fist to hit him in the face.

"Game over for you, old man!" Killua smirked.

"No! Killua!" Gon stopped him before he did anything else. Killua jumped back and let the man free.

"Why did you stop me, Gon?" he asked.

"We still have plenty of time. Let's continue until we can take him one on one," Gon proposed. "It'd be a waste to stop now! Because we're in perfect form!"

Binolt stood up with a smirk in his face.

"Idiots! That was your last chance," he told them. "This time, I'll be attacking you!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just do it tomorrow, can you? You should rest, your movements are kinda slow now. Also, you can't even keep your eyes open," Hitomi joked in the last part. "Oh, wait. They are just too small normally."

Killua glared at her, raising an eyebrow.

"What? It was just an observation," she defended herself.

After that, they leaned to a rock in the opposite side from where the enemy was and closed their eyes. As soon as Binolt tried to move, the kids looked at him, making him sit still. His Zetsu was kind of imperfect compared to their senses.

Next day, the kids woke up before their enemy. Hitomi stood in front of him, covering the sun light and making him wake up as well.

"Good morning," she grinned, playfully. She then jumped back to avoid an attack with his scissor. "That's your way for saying 'good morning'? Oh my god, the excess of politeness you have will kill me if you continue like that!"

They decided to fight Binolt for turns and they did so for some days. That day Hitomi and Killua were watching Gon avoiding easily his attacks and throwing some punches that didn't hit him.

"At first I thought that it was his movements slowing down but now I think it isn't like that," the girl commented. "We've gotten faster, haven't we?"

"It still surprises me. I mean, were we this much different?" Killua said. "That's the experience gained from fighting a stronger opponent with your life at stake."

Next was Killua's turn, who avoided Binolt's attacks as well as Gon. However, the enemy's mind still wandered somewhere else, remembering his childhood.

He remembered it. He used to be poor, an outcast. And whenever he wanted to help someone, he was hit because they used to think that he wanted something else.

Just because his appearance.

"My turn!" Hitomi shouted.

Hitomi stood in front of Binolt and tried to punch him. He avoided and tried to strike as well, still remembering that particular memory.

When he tried to give the purse back to that woman, because she had dropped it. In the end, he ended up being seriously injured by her and her husband, just because, again, they thought he wanted something back.

But he didn't ask for something. He only had a wish in his head. Just one.

" _I just..."_ he thought. " _I just wanted to live a normal life!"_

Just as the sunset showed in the sky, Hitomi managed to, at least, avoid his hits and raise her leg to kick the man. She didn't hit him, but tapped his belly with her foot.

He then decided he had enough. He dropped his weapon and let himself fall into his knees, in the floor. He looked at the ground, in surrender.

"I stand no chance," he murmured. "Kill me."

"And get myself all dirty because of your nasty blood?" Hitomi said, with a playful smirk. "No thanks. Go and suicide yourself if you want somewhere, but far away from me."

He looked up at her, confused. Meanwhile, Biscuit came closer to them.

"Binolt-san, thank you!" Gon grinned next to her. "Thanks to you, we have improved a lot!"

"O-Once I leave, I'll turn myself in," he said. "Will you let me go at that?"

Biscuit gave him a long look.

"Go," she simply said.

"See? If the master says it's okay, it's okay," Hitomi said. "Come on, get lost. Shoo."

They watched Binolt's back for a little, as he walked away. Little after that, Hitomi released a long sigh before narrowing her eyes in thought. She then glanced at Biscuit for a long time, still thinking over that same matter.

" _There are a pair of Scarlet Eyes here... And she is aiming to get them..."_

The older girl noticed her staring, right after she looked away. She looked at the small scarlet glint in her eyes and smiled sadly, guessing what she was thinking about.

"You know what, Hitomi? You did make me decide something. I think I will aim only and exclusively for the Blue Planet," Biscuit said, making the girl give her a puzzled look. "After seeing you activating the real ones made me realize that having fresh eyes would be disgusting... Seriously, touching real eyes would be like... _Eww_."

Hitomi knew that, somewhere inside her, Biscuit was a good person for doing that. She smiled in thanks before looking at the sunset.

" _Search for Gon's father if you want, make yourself stronger,"_ she unconsciously touched the earring she had, remembering Kurapika's words right then. " _You don't have to hurry, the eyes will appear in your way, even if you don't want to."_

" _You were right, Brother. They did appear in my way, without me looking for them,"_ she thought. " _They are here, so... even though it would seem selfish..."_

She took a long breath, still looking at the last rays of sun. The other two just stared at her back, knowing that she was going to say something, but in silence.

"Gon, Killua, I'm sorry but I'll change my plans for being here," Hitomi was dead serious. "I'm going for something, the Scarlet Eyes."

"Don't be sorry, idiot," Killua smirked. "We were waiting for you to say that."

"Yeah!" Gon grinned. "And we will help you with that!"

Hitomi turned around and gave them a warm smile. She just couldn't express in words how grateful and happy she was feeling right now.

* * *

The four of them had successfully arrived at Masadora, but they had to head back to the road they had been into. Why? Because of Biscuit training.

Once there, she took off the cards she had bought in Masadora and used Gain. In front of her appeared three shovels, three flashlights, three large ropes and a cart. The trio looked at it, in confusion.

"And now, we'll head back to Masadora," Biscuit said.

Their faces fell.

" _Didn't we just get back from there?"_ Killua thought, pissed off. " _Could this hag be losing her memory?"_

" _Wait,"_ Hitomi looked at the items and froze. " _Oh, please. Please don't tell me we are-"_

"However, this time we're heading directly toward it," the teacher said while pointing at the huge rock.

Hitomi facepalmed. She was right, and she didn't like that one bit.

They spend all the day shoveling and, in the end, they managed to go through the first one. Once on the other side, the three let themselves fall into the ground tiredly, gasping a little for air.

"We made it at least..." Hitomi mumbled.

"I can't go on anymore..." Gon muttered.

"We probably only moved about 200 meters..." Killua commented.

"You are sure?" Gon exclaimed, sitting down. "I'm 100 more times tired than yesterday..."

"I'm gonna kill that baby-faced hag..." the girl's eyebrow twitched.

Biscuit, on the other hand, saw them lying on the floor and came closer. She told them that if they wanted to rest, they had to do it in a rather... _unique_ way.

They had to sleep in a sitting position, holding a rope that had a rock tied on it. If they released it, the stone would hit them right in their heads. In addition, Biscuit could arbitrary come and cut it with her knife out of the blue.

Killua smirked and closed his eyes. Not long after that, he was sleeping quietly.

" _It's not fair..."_ Hitomi pouted. " _I'm sure he is that skilfull because of his assassin's stuff."_

Hitomi tried to sleep, but she couldn't. One of the reasons were Gon's shouts of pain, because the rock continued to fall and hit him. The other one was that she would eventually wake up because her grip on the rope was slacking down and she had to grab it in fright of having the same destiny than Gon.

She opened one eye and watched Biscuit. She was talking to Gon again, not paying attention to her.

" _Well, one little cheat won't harm anyone, would it?"_ she thought.

Quickly, she wrapped the rope in her thumb. She positioned her hand in a way that it could be hidden and smirked.

" _That would just work."_

She let her eyelids drop as she slip into sleep. However, a wave of pain in her head woke her up little after. She put her hands in her sore head and grimaced. Hitomi then looked at Biscuit, who was grinning and wavering her knife around.

"No cheating allowed~" she chanted. "What happened with the girl who didn't like to cheat from the other time?"

Hitomi just clicked her tongue in annoyance. The rock, in punishment, became bigger. After tying it and placing it above her, she leaned against the rock and released a long sigh.

" _It's far more tiring than trying with that psycho hairdresser-to be guy..."_ she thought.

But then her eyes flew opened.

" _I had slept right then, so why can't I do so now?"_ she closed her eyes. " _Just... focus."_

* * *

"So you haven't sleep last night again, Gon?" Killua asked his friend.

"I'm fine..." he muttered.

Hitomi looked at the bags under his eyes. "Yeah, right," she sighed. "If your definition of 'fine' is look like a zombie - and not on Halloween - then you are in perfect form."

They dug for a long time more, and Hitomi was feeling irritated already. They had been doing nothing but that and... oh yeah, trying to not get their skull smashed by a huge rock in their sleep.

That was _so_ fun.

" _And Gon's father told him to have fun... and now look at him. He looks like the walking dead,"_ Hitomi thought. " _Man! Does these rocks have Nen or something to be this hard-!"_

And idea hit her mind as she used Gyo. Certainly, the rock hadn't any aura, only her body. The shovel had not either...

That was the problem.

A smirk draw itself on her face for a little before faking an irritation expression. She released a long sigh and ruffled her own hair.

"That's getting into my nerves!" she yelled, making the heads of the boys snap at her direction. "I refuse to lose to a rock!"

She stabbed the shovel into the rocky wall and she easily took some rocks out of there. Killua and Gon looked at her and blinked.

Hitomi now was progressing pretty quickly.

"How do you do that?" Killua asked.

"Will power?" she grinned, before shoveling once again.

The white-headed raised an eyebrow, wondering about that. Gon blinked a few times and pouted, before trying to dig through the rock in front of him. His hand started to hurt once he hit a hard section.

"I can't dig through it..." he commented, before raising his fist. "A punch with Nen could break through it but..."

Gon used Gyo and stared at the aura focused on his hand, making an idea cross through his mind. He then looked at Hitomi and gaped, seeing her Nen activated in all her body and in the shovel as well.

"Eh?! Hitomi!" he yelled, pointing at her. "That's dirty!"

She just grinned playfully, sticking her tongue at him. Killua, on the other hand, just looked at them both, cluelessly.

"What happens to you aura while you are shoveling?" Gon asked Killua.

"My aura?" he activated his Nen, still confused. "As usual... it stayed normal."

"Oh my god, you are just too slow," Hitomi grinned, waving her shovel around. "Just think of it like a part of you."

"Part of me..." his eyes opened in realization. "Ah!"

And like that, the three of them used the same technique - called Shu - and the rock began to feel like pudding. At the end, what they thought it could take them years, it took them a couple of weeks more.

Tired, but happy, the three kids raised their hands to the sky when they arrived to the city.

"Alright!" Killua exclaimed.

"We've finally reached Masadora!" Gon chirped.

"And this proves that we can do everything-!" Hitomi smirked.

"Okay!" Biscuit cut her off, raising a fist in the air. "Now, we'll head back again!"

Well, except _that_. The three turned around to see her and their faces fell in disbelief. Just by seeing her they could make themselves sure that she was serious.

"Again?" the boys said in disbelief.

"What the hell?" Hitomi mumbled under her breath. "Hags of these days have sure a _long_ stamina..."

 _ **SMACK!**_

Hitomi now knew what Killua was used to suffer everyday. She was right about her hypothesis though. Flying high and landing painfully wasn't a beautiful thing to do and she wasn't waiting _that_ eagerly for it to happen again.

She made her mind about one thing. For the first time in her whole life, Hitomi was going to be careful with the words coming out her mouth from now on.

* * *

"Keep both offense and defense at fifty percent and adjust them accordingly depending on the circumstances," Biscuit instructed. "I'll call this offence-defense. Also, it's called Ryu. Take it slow for starters."

Hitomi and Killua stood in front of each other, sliding into fighting positions. Slowly, the boy raised his leg to kick the girl.

"Right leg offence-defense, seventy percent. Whole body, thirty percent," the master told him, as Hitomi raised her hand to block the attack. "Hitomi, left hand offence-defense, seventy percent. Whole body, thirty percent."

She did as she was told and successfully avoided being hit. She raised her right fist to punch him instead. Killua grabbed her hand and blocked it as well.

"Now, adjust your offense-defense yourselves," she said, before turning to Gon. "Well, you have to be sparring with me meanwhile. I'll be easy on you."

"Osu!" he nodded.

Hitomi found herself enjoying sparring with Killua, and so did he. They were getting faster movements, even though they never managed to land a kick on each other. Either way, that Ryu-thing was a little exciting.

Biscuit on the other hand, clapped her hands when Gon stepped back and told the trio to take a break from their training for a while.

"It's only been two weeks since we started. What amazing improvement," she commented. "I thought it would take at least two full months but... I'm just astonished."

"What can I say? _We_ are amazing," Hitomi grinned. "Especially me, being honest."

"And being humble too..." Killua remarked, sarcastically.

"Exactly," she said playfully. "If it wasn't from my humbleness, I would just say that you'd be dead if I weren't here."

Killua sighed, feeling irritated every second he talked to her.

"I guess you don't have a low self-esteem..." Gon smiled nervously, as he scratched his cheek with his finger.

"She have a _high_ self-esteem, more likely..." Killua facepalmed. "That's the problem."

Biscuit just laughed a little bit before continuing.

"As I was saying, at your current states, moving to the final stage won't be a problem," she said. "Last training is specific abilities. Gon is Enhancement, Hitomi is Manipulation and Killua is Transmutation, right?"

The first was level one Enhancement, rock breaking. Because of that, she took a rock from the floor and crushed it with another one, using Nen on it of course. And told them to break a thousand rocks with a single one to pass.

And like that they started. After a while, Hitomi's rock snapped.

"This is irritating!" she sighed. "I only managed to break 167 rocks... It's not even a round number!"

"So it is?" Gon sighed, looking at his broken rock. "I just managed made it to 150..."

Killua on the other hand, was still working. "189... 190," he counted until his rock broke. He let his back lean in the floor, in surrender. "Ah... damn it. I messed up..."

"What are you talking about?" Biscuit smiled. "You are doing well. It usually takes a few weeks to clear 100 rocks."

"Alright!" he sat down. "Next, let's do Transmutation training."

"No, let's do Manipulation!" she argued. Killua was about to fight back, but Biscuit talked first.

"Don't rush it. Different abilities should be trained on different days," she raised her finger.

"Six!" they shouted.

"Bingo!" Biscuit grinned. "It's a draw."

"Again?" Killua complained.

"We've been like this for quite some time..." Gon said.

"Then, why don't we decide with Rock, Paper and Scissors?" Hitomi proposed.

They nodded and they played. Of course, Gon won so Killua and Hitomi got forced to do 500 sit-ups and push-ups.

"Damn it!" Killua cursed.

"It was pretty obvious..." the girl mumbled.

"So, why did you choose such a way?" he asked her, beginning to feel irritated.

"Because I knew you would accept and lose..." she smirked in a evil way. "Even if it meant that I would have to do this too."

A vein popped up in Killua's head and did his best to not hit her and not say anything else. That girl was just annoying.

Biscuit then commented them about the origin of Rock-Paper-Scissors, or Janken. She said that it comes from a martial art called Jaken in which Sho was Paper, Ken was Rock and Shi was Scissors. Therefore, Sho destroyed the organs. Shi, features like eyes or nose. And finally Ken, it destroyed externally.

"I see..." Gon mumbled.

"As expected from an ancient one..." Killua commented.

Killua was hit again and Hitomi closed her eyes after his painful landing. Meanwhile, Gon was getting an idea for his technique.

* * *

End of another long chapter!

Sorry for breaking the canon like this, but it had to be done for this particular story, because I have to find a way to her to furfill the promise she had made to Kurapika. That doesn't mean that the story is going to end now, because I still have planned a long more before this. However, the time will eventually come. Well, that's it.

 **JokeLover123:** Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you liked last chapter and I hope that you enjoyed this as well :)

 **Kri:** I'm happy you liked last one, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thank you for leaving review :)

 **Elisablackcat:** Thanks for reviewing! I wish you had fun here too :D

 **SoulXHunter:** Thanks for the review! I hope you liked this chapter as much as the last one :)

 **Mr. Kohen:** Thanks to you as well! Let's hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

 **Silent Readers:** Thank you for passing by here! Hope you had fun!

See you later!


	25. Kuroro x Nen Abilities x Group Talk

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 25: Kuroro Lucifer x Nen Abilities x Group Talk**

"First comes Rock..." Gon chanted. "Rock, Paper... Paper!"

He extended his hand and focused his Nen on it. He tried to emit Nen, but he just couldn't. Biscuit said he could eventually do that through training.

"If Rock is Enhancement and Paper is Emission..." Killua smiled. "Does that mean Scissors is Transmutation?"

"Yeah!" he nodded. "Rock, Paper... Scissors!"

He waved his hand around, with his fingers like scissors but nothing happened. The teacher then supposed that he wanted to turn it into a blade.

They talked a little more, before Killua coughed on purpose a little to bring their attention. He put his fingers close to each other and the other three got surprised. A electric current flow between them and it got bigger as he moved his hands and pull them away a little bit.

"Well, I can only do this much right now, but once I recharge, the voltage will be much greater," he said as he stopped doing that electricity-thing. "I'm all set as well. All that's left is to figure out how to use it, which I'll slowly think about."

"Wow, Killua!" Gon exclaimed, hyped up. "You're just an electric eel!"

"That's a bad comparison, you know..." Killua muttered.

"It matches him perfectly! But if you don't like it, we can just call you an electric charger," Hitomi teased before holding her music device. "Also, something out of topic, can you charge this up? I'm sure the battery died a while ago..."

"That's because we are inside a game, idiot!" he yelled, pissed off.

"Oh, yeah," she grinned widely, even though she already knew that. "That's true."

Killua's eyebrow twitched slightly as Hitomi laughed, while putting the device back in her pocket. After a little silence, the three kids started to laugh.

Biscuit, on the other hand, stared at the boy for a bit.

 _"It's frightening to imagine that a child of his age can convert aura into electricity..."_ she thought. _"But more is his misfortune. Everyday must've been hell for him. It's a miracle that he's able to laugh it off just like that."_

Gon then looked at Hitomi and grinned widely. She raised an eyebrow.

"You said you have a technique," Gon said. "Show it to us!"

"Yeah, since my ability looks like an electric charger, let's see yours," Killua said, rolling his eyes. "I'll try to not die because of the surprise."

"Just watch," she smirked.

She closed her eyes for a bit and opened them. The three of them looked at the scarlet color in them and gaped.

"You can control them like Kurapika?" Gon exclaimed.

She nodded, her smirk widening. "It looks like the Specialist ability is a Kuruta-thing, because I'm able to use all Nen categories at 100 percent," she then took a rock from the ground and smashed it with just one hand, using Enhancement.

"That's all?" Killua mocked. "That was lame."

"Lame?" she looked at him directly on the eyes. "If you wait a bit, I'll prove you wrong."

He stared at her eyes, which reached the brightest scale of red. Killua raised an eyebrow, since she didn't do anything for a bit.

But she spoke long after that.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Huh?" he was confused. "What do you mean?"

"Your right arm. I mean, it's bleeding," she told him.

Right then, they all looked at his right arm and gaped. It was bleeding, indeed, like he was cut. But... when? They had been watching her the entire time.

"It must hurt a lot," she tilted her head.

A wave of pain ran through his arm and he was forced to get a hold on it with his left hand. He gasped for air, as it increased as the seconds passed by.

 _"How the hell...?"_ he thought.

All of sudden, the soreness stopped. He looked up at the girl, who was grinning and looking at him with violet eyes.

His arm was now healed, like nothing had just happened.

"Cool!" Gon chirped. "Is that you technique?"

"It is," she replied, proudly. "I call it Sweet Requiem."

"How do you... do that?" Killua asked, still looking to his arm.

Her grin became wider.

"Actually, I use Emission to emit my aura through my voice and I use Manipulation to control the brain to make some commands. That's why you, Killua, only felt pain before I suggested you were hurt," she explained. "However, my Nen is not that strong. I can't kill the enemy with that technique."

They stared at her, and Biscuit narrowed her eyes in thought.

"I have a condition, though," Hitomi continued. "I have to manage to make the enemy look at my Scarlet Eyes for at least fifteen heartbeats. Also, they have to be in the brightest scale of red, otherwise it won't work."

"And the time can vary from enemy to enemy. It would be a problem, because it depends of the experience they have. A more experienced person would be calm at the sight of your eyes and their heartbeat would be slower, so it would take more time than a rookie, whose heartbeats are faster because they can't be as calm as them, for example. Am I wrong?" Killua said, and she nodded. "But there's something I still don't understand. How can you know that the time is up?"

"I don't know," she shrugged. "I just feel like that."

Gon blinked and Killua sighed. _"What kind of answer is that?"_ they thought.

"That's a powerful technique... too much for that only restriction," Biscuit said, looking at her with a serious expression. "There are more than that, aren't they?"

The boys looked at her in surprise. Hitomi narrowed her eyes and sighed. She wanted to keep that part quiet, but she didn't have much other option.

That old lady was good.

"Well... I have. That's why I only can use this when I'm positive it would work," she admitted. "If the enemy breaks eye-contact, I lose a little of my Nen, depending how long I stared at them. I mean, I'll have less to lose if the connection breaks at three heartbeats than twelve."

"But the enemy can also attack you," Killua said, and she flinched. "What happens then?"

"Uh... Let's just say that the damage I receive becomes the double and it can have repercussions on my life energy and stamina... and tires me a lot," she trailed off. "And, in the worst of the cases... I can... well, die."

They stared at her, with a shocked expression. She scratched the back on her neck in uneasiness.

"Are you insane?! You'll get killed in no time with a restriction like that!" Killua shouted at her. "What were you thinking?!"

"We _are_ in a game where we can die! It makes no difference!" she said, as Killua looked away. She released a long sigh before smiling kindly. "You don't have to worry, I won't use it carelessly. After all, I can still control sound. Sweet Requiem is just for emergencies, like a trump card."

"Just trust Hitomi, Killua," Gon said to his friend. "She says that you don't have to worry, so be it."

"That's the problem, idiot. She says that, but she won't do it," Killua poked Gon's forehead. "Do you really think that dumb-blonde will _actually_ take care of herself? She'll just die a idiotic death because of her so-called trump card!"

"Oh, really?" Hitomi's eyebrow twitched. "I'm sorry, Mr. Independent Boy!"

Biscuit laughed a bit, stopping them from arguing.

"Let's call it a day here. I know it's a bit early but you guys want a party anyway?" Biscuit asked, as they blinked. "I guess you three were too busy training to notice. It's almost New Year in the real world. Time flows at the same pace both in and outside of the game."

Gon paled at the thought.

"Oh, crap..." he mumbled. Killua and Hitomi eyed him in confusion before he turned to face the boy. "The Hunter Exam!"

"Ah!" Killua's eyes opened in realization.

"That's true! If you don't register soon, you won't make the deadline!" Hitomi added. "We have to kick you out the game now but... how?"

"They are a lot of people stuck in the game for years, so..." Killua thought.

Biscuit put a finger under her chin, in thought.

* * *

"Got it!" they cheered, happily.

The three of them made a high-five, as Killua held the card they were looking for, Passage Ticket.

"That was easy!" Killua said.

"Way too easy," Hitomi nodded. "I can't believe these guys' incapacity of getting it."

Biscuit smiled while looking at them. _"The conditions to get that card weren't all that easy,"_ she thought. _"Geez. They're so good that they're no longer cute."_

"Well, I'll be back in a jiffy after I pass the Exam," Killua said.

"You better do that," Hitomi told him. "If you dare to fail - even though you know already Nen - I'll kick you out the game right after you arrive... and _literally._ Got it?"

"Got it, got it..." he shook his head, smirking a bit.

"Also, Killua," Gon caught the boy's attention. "There's a group of magical monsters who live near the port of Dore in a mountain with a lone cedar tree. If you tell them that you are our friend, they will take you to this year's Exam Hall."

Killua nodded, as Biscuit told him to continue practicingNen during the trip. After that, he walked away and Gon waved after him.

"As for us, we're heading back to Masadora for some more training, okay?" Biscuit turned to her two students.

"Osu!" Gon nodded, energetically.

"Yeah, yeah..." Hitomi said, unenthusiastically.

Even if she didn't want to admit it, Hitomi knew that the following days would be boring without Killua around.

Not long after, the three were running in the forest. That was Transmutation training, level one. Shape shifting.

"You're clear once you're able to form zero to nine within a minute's time," Biscuit said, as she easily did the task. "Though your final goal will be form them all under five seconds."

Hitomi was having problems with it, even more than Gon. She was still trying to form the number zero, while Gon was trying to form the number two.

 _"Is that supposed to be a number one? It looks more like a cake hit by a truck,"_ Hitomi sighed, looking at her shapeless number. _"To be expected... Not for nothing the farthest category from Manipulation in the chart is Transmutation..."_

Her eyes opened as the idea came to her mind. The chart, her eyes. She smirked.

Time for cheating.

Biscuit and Gon looked at the girl, who improved quickly. She was at the point to form the numbers nearly as quick as Biscuit, a Transmuter, could.

"Wha-!" Gon pointed at Hitomi's red eyes. "That's cheating!"

"Be careful!" Hitomi warned him. "You could-!"

 ** _POOF!_**

"... that..." Hitomi stopped along Biscuit, sweatdropping. He had just bumped with a tree.

"Don't forget to watch where you're going," Biscuit said, while placing her hands on her waist.

"Okay..." he mumbled, putting a hand in his sore head.

They then heard something and a beam of light appeared in front of them, as a player landed on the floor. They recognized it as Abengane and noticed that he had some strange device in his shoulder.

"Isn't your other friend with you?" he asked.

"He is not," Hitomi replied, still not trusting him.

"W-What's that contraption on your shoulder?" Biscuit asked, in fake-shyness.

Gon raised an eyebrow at her while Hitomi facepalmed.

"That cute-girl act again..." Hitomi mumbled to Gon. "I wonder what would be that guy's expression when he finds out that she actually has fift-"

The old lady's glare was enough to shut the girl up.

"It was planted by Bomber," Abengane replied Biscuit's question, making all of them look at him in surprise. "Please, listen to what I have to say."

They all sat in the floor and he told them his story. It happened that the guy with glasses from the other time - Genthru- was the Bomber and had some terrifying abilities, including the one called Little Flower. Also, all the members of that joined that group got the same bomb on them.

 _"I think that's the first time we should thank Gon's stubbornness..."_ Hitomi thought..

"The other members are at our base waiting for Bomber's mass deactivation," Abengane continued. "He's most likely lying but they're trusting him anyway."

"Trusting someone who can make you explode in bits in a second..." the girl commented. "And I thought that Gon was the most simple-minded guy in the world..."

"Hey!" Gon pouted.

"Sorry, sorry," she scratched the back of her head. She then turned serious once again. "Either way, can the explosion be avoided or something?"

"That's right," Biscuit agreed. "Even if some are slain by Little Flower, if everyone goes for him at the same time..."

"That's impossible," he replied. "The ones who go first will surely die. Who would want to sacrifice his life for the others' sake? He's counting on this psywar to win it all for him. While all of us struggle to find out what's really going on, he will be in the most advantageous position. To tell you the truth, I feel like I'm caught in some kind of a joke."

"I got everything but one thing," Hitomi narrowed her eyes. "Why are you telling us all of this?"

"If one meets him in ignorance one has no chance in defeating him. That's why I'm telling you this. Of all the people I've met on this island, you people came across as the most reliable," he said. "And if possible, I want you to avenge us. Or at least, stop him from clearing the game."

That word again rang in Hitomi's ears. Revenge.

Abengane then stood up and took off his book. He told them that he was going to warn more players before he finally left.

 _"If I want to do as he says, I can't only rely in my Sweet Requiem... or I'll dead,"_ Hitomi thought, looking at her hand. _"Wait, I can use more Nen types than Manipulation or Emission... so..."_

She turned around to Biscuit.

"Hey, Bisky," she grinned. "As you see I'm that wonderful that I can control every Nen category at their 100 percent, so-"

"What do you want?" Biscuit cut her off.

"Can I train alone for awhile? I think I can manage to develop a technique," she smirked. "At least until Killua arrives."

Like that, time passed by. Hitomi would spar with Gon sometimes or train if her technique, which was a Transmutation only.

That day come, and so did Killua.

The three of them looked at the boy, who waved his hand at them.

"Welcome back, Killua!" Gon shouted.

"That was way too fast!" Hitomi commented. "You didn't fail, did you?"

"Of course not!" he said, grinning. "I passed in lighting speed! Returning took longer than the actual Exam. It was a piece of cake!"

They three then made a high five and laughed a bit.

"Well, sorry to interrupt your celebration," Biscuit said, taking off her book. "Take a look at our spell cards, Killua."

He looked at them. "Wow, cool! You've got tons," he said. "So, have you tried any of them?"

They looked at each other, so Killua understood that they didn't.

"What? Now that we have plenty we'd better take advantage of them," he said. "We'll have to get used to using them, or else we won't be able to use them effectively."

"I guess you're right..." Biscuit commented.

Killua then decided to try first one called Contact. Gon used it and they looked at the list of people they had meet before.

And Hitomi swore that her eyes turned scarlet for a brief moment.

"Hey, Gon," the boy said, pointing to a name from Gon's contact list. "When exactly did you meet this guy?"

Gon looked at it and his eyes flew opened.

 _"Kuroro Lucifer"_

Hitomi didn't talk but stared at the name for a long while. How did he manage to enter in Greed Island? After all, only people with Nen could get in there.

There were two reasons she could think of. One, they found they found a way to make Kurapika's Nen useless. Or two, Kurapika's Nen disappeared because of _death._

 _"Oh, please, don't be that,"_ she silently prayed.

"But we haven't seen Kuroro," Gon said. "Not in the game, if it's the same Kuroro."

"Umm..." Biscuit said, cluelessly. "What are you talking about? Who's this 'Kuroro'?"

"So," Killua ignored her, "you either didn't recognize each other, or he only recognized you two and-"

"No way," Hitomi said. "I'd recognize that face no matter what. It's burnt in my head."

Gon was confused. "I don't understand," he said. "He should still be under the hold of Kurapika's Nen."

"I said... who's Kurapika?" Biscuit inquired again.

But no one paid her attention, pissing her off.

"You're right..." Killua put a hand under his chin. "You can't enter the game without using Nen. So we can conclude that-"

Hitomi froze, feeling a death aura behind her. Slowly, she turned around to see Biscuit's vein popping up in her head, in anger.

 _"We are so dead..."_ that was her only thought.

 ** _SMACK!_**

"Let me in the conversation too!" the woman yelled.

Hitomi rubbed her sore back, as soon as she fell on the ground along the other boys. She huffed, before starting to explain filling her teacher up.

"There's a way to remove one's Nen ability, you know," Biscuit smiled, once the girl finished her explanation. "It's an ability called Exorcism, but few can use it."

"That would mean that Kuroro removed Kurapika's Nen and entered the game," the whitehead said.

Hitomi gazed at her feet, still worried.

"Why would he be here though?" Gon asked.

"We don't know, but Kurapika has to know about this," Hitomi commented, before waving her hand at them. "Alright, is my time to be out of this game."

"Use a spell card," he told her.

"Don't bother, keep it," she replied, before turning around and starting to walk away. "I'll back in four hours or so. See ya!"

* * *

Hitomi looked at the buildings of the city for a long time and took a long breath before smiling softly.

"I thought my legs would feel like jelly or something after been out all this time," she said to herself, before taking her cell phone out of her pocket. "Well, doesn't matter."

She put the phone on her ear and pressed it against her head unconsciously. Millions of questions appeared in her mind while she heard the rings.

 _"What if he doesn't pick up because he is doing something stupid... again?"_ she thought, panicking a bit. _"What if he is being chased by the Spiders right now? What if he never picks up because he is already dead? What if-?"_

Her chain of thoughts got stopped when the ringing died down. For a less than a second - or a long while to her - the time didn't flow. She tensed, waiting for her brother's reply in the silence.

"Hello," Kurapika's gentle voice sounded through the phone.

The color returned to the girl's face, as she released the breath she didn't know she was holding all this time. She relaxed slightly, letting a grin draw in her face.

"Hi, there!" she said, happily. "Your dearest sister talking!"

"Ah, Hitomi," he replied, rather surprised. "Something wrong?"

"It's wrong to want to say hi to my only brother? You're so cold, Blondie!" Hitomi pouted, still joking. "Oh well, sorry for disturbing from your busy lif-!"

"Hitomi," Kurapika said, chucking a little bit. "You know, I know you since you were born."

The girl laughed a bit, before Kurapika turned serious again.

"So, now, what's the matter?" he asked. "As far as I knew, you were in Greed Island with Killua and Gon, weren't you?"

"Well, yeah, something like that," she turned serious again. "We were looking in the list of people we met in the game and we found something... well... _someone."_

"Who?" he asked, cautiously.

"Kuroro Lucifer," she spoke. "And you know, you can only get in there through Nen, so..."

No one talked for a bit. Hitomi waited for her brother's reply quietly, since she had not idea how he would react at this.

"That's impossible," he replied, calmly. "If he... no. If the _Spiders_ had removed it I would have known it."

"You mean that you considered that when you used the technique?"

"Of course," he replied as a matter of fact, annoying Hitomi a little. "Since some Nen abilities can be used against people, it's only logical that there are abilities to remove it."

"Oh, sorry, Genius-boy..." she said, sarcastically. "I forgot you are always a step ahead all of us."

"I'm glad then you remembered it then," he joked back.

The girl chuckled, before scratching the back of her neck, unsure of how to continue the conversation.

"Well, I'm telling you this for your self-protection," she said. "Do whatever you want with this information... except of chasing them again. I don't want to get out the game just to find out I'm only child."

"Yeah, yeah, don't worry about me," he chuckled again. "I promise I won't do it anymore."

"You better keep it," she smirked.

"Also, thanks for notifying me," Kurapika smiled. "Take care."

"You too," she replied. "Bye."

Kurapika cut the call, still in thought. What his sister had told him recently caught him out of guard, even if in the end he took it calmly.

 _"It's not Kuroro,"_ he thought. _"But I get the feeling they're somehow related."_

Senritsu walked up to him and said that Light Nostrade wanted to meet him. In his way to meet his employer, he passed by his boss' room. She was flipping her pencil around, like she was used to do when she summoned her Lovely Ghostwriter.

"I don't understand..." she mumbled to herself. "Why can't I do it anymore?"

Kurapika didn't say anything and walked away. He entered at the room and looked at the mess on it. Books were thrown in all the place, along with paper bins and empty bottles of alcohol.

In the middle was Nostrade. He was sitting in a sofa, with his hands on his head, at the verge of starting to pull off his own hair.

"You called for me?" Kurapika asked, formally.

"What should I do... this month?" he asked, in desperation. "Tell me! What am I supposed to do?!"

"Don't worry, leave it to me," the boy kept quiet. "Everything is progressing as planned."

Light stood up quickly.

"What do you know?! How would you know anything of the future?!" he yelled. "Neon! It's Neon! Quickly get her back to normal!" he then started to mumble to himself. "Damn it... damn it..."

After excusing himself, Kurapika went out the room. This situation was quite predictable, given that the man's only source of power was his daughter. Now that Kuroro stole her Nen ability, he could never get over with the debts of his.

Now, Kurapika didn't see the reason behind being still there. He could keep in touch with his friend Senritsu, so there wouldn't be a problem.

Nostrade didn't have money enough to pay his bodyguards and he would soon realize that. Also, he had no money to spoil Neon anymore and bought her more treasures, including the Scarlet Eyes.

 _"I think it's time to find another job..."_ he thought.

He then got closer to the window and looked through it for a while. The only thing in his mind was what his sister had told him before. The thought of someone related with the Spiders made him feel a little uneasy.

 _"Even if I don't want to fight, they could eventually come to kill me... or them. Hitomi and the others are also in danger,"_ he furrowed his eyebrows. _"At the level I'm now, I don't stand a chance... I need to get stronger."_

* * *

"How was it?" Gon asked the girl as soon as she arrived at the agreed place.

"He says it's not him," Hitomi replied. "Kurapika was way too calm when I mentioned Kuroro... I expected him to go beserk, run away and kill himself while attacking a Spider, but it wasn't the case."

They stayed in silence for a while, before Biscuit decided to cut it off.

"Well, it's good not to jump in conclusions," she said, before smiling. "Now, let's focus on our own tasks!"

The three younger people smiled and nodded.

"Gon, go ahead and show Killua your ultimate technique."

He nodded and Killua looked at him, curiously. Hitomi, on the other hand, placed her hands behind her head and smirked.

"First comes Rock!" he chanted. "Rock, Paper... Paper!"

From his open palm, a ball of Nen got emitted efficiently. Gon then sighed, before placing a stick in the middle of three rocks.

"First comes Rock!" he chanted again. "Rock, Paper... Scissors!"

His two fingers transformed into a sword and cut through the stick. After that, he started to celebrate for accomplishing that, surprising Killua a little.

"Don't tell me this is the first time you've done it!" Killua said, shocked.

"No way!" Gon argued. "It's my fifth!"

"Oh..." Killua raised an eyebrow, uninterested. "So, how many times have you failed?"

Gon sweatdropped.

"About twenty," Hitomi told him, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"But my success rate has gone up!" Gon was feeling a little annoyed. "It's 1-to-10 now!"

"That's fine," Killua replied. "But do you really have to keep saying that intro before executing your moves?"

Gon stared at him while Hitomi snickered. She had tried to convince him of that, but she just kept failing miserably.

"Well... If I don't do it, it won't seem like an ultimate technique, right?"

"I guess..." Killua didn't know what to say. "But then the enemy will be able to anticipate your moves. You'd just be wide open for attacks. What will you do if he attacks while you're saying it?"

"I'll just evade as I say it," he said, stubbornly.

"And what if you can't?"

"I'll still do it!"

"What?!"

Biscuit giggled a little. "Hitomi," she then turned at her. "How about you?"

"Well, it's not that _great_ as Gon, but..." she shrugged. "It can become handy."

"Come on, go ahead."

Hitomi then smirked, her eyes turned scarlet and disappeared from everyone's sight. They looked up, just to see her standing on a branch of a tree.

"I see... Enchanted speed," Biscuit nodded. "You used Transmutation to transform your reflexes into sound. Not bad."

"Wow... that was original," Killua commented, sarcastically.

"Because being a phone charger is way too original!" she joked back.

"Phone charger? What the hell?"

After a few days, the four had already get a lot of cards, including the Paladin's Necklace that was now hanging around Gon's neck, since it could be useful for players who would try to cheat on them while exchanging cards with Fake, because the necklace allowed him to turn them back to normal.

They had arrived at Dorias, City of Gambling and Killua realized that the trick for winning was using the Risky Dice.

"This dice is key item to completing this town!" he said.

"It wouldn't be too pretty if 'bad luck' came out though," Biscuit added.

"Don't worry," Killua assured. "The probability of getting that is only five percent. It won't happen that often-!"

 _ **BOOM!**_

They all looked around and found smoke rushing out the casino they had been.

"A slot machine blew up and injured its player!" one of the characters told the other.

"I knew something was going on! There's no way you can get five jackpots in a row!" the other commented. "He was using some strange dice though..."

They all paled. Hitomi raised an eyebrow and glared at Killua with the corner of her eye.

"You were saying...?" she said.

"Hey," Gon said, softly. "Let's stop using it."

Killua shook his head, and smiled. "No, just one more time!" he said.

"Oh yeah, that's just like him alright..." Gon mumbled. "It was the same way in Yorkshin too..."

"It sure brings me memories..." Hitomi facepalmed.

"Well, in the worst case we can stop him by force," Biscuit said.

Back at the casino, Killua won a little more thanks to the dice. Hitomi was still keeping her distance to the boy, just in case. Who knows? If some machine suddenly exploded, she wasn't that interested in be close to him...

"That's enough of the dice, okay?" Gon told his friend, whose cat-mode activated.

"Just one more time wouldn't-"

He was cut off when Biscuit hit him and knocked him unconscious. spitting blood in the process. Hitomi sighed, since she got forced to carry him all the way to the next city.

"You'd better not drool on me..." she mumbled.

Hitomi eyed him for a second and smiled to herself before continuing walking. She, however, blushed a little under Biscuit's knowing gaze and Gon's grin.

"Say something and I will kill you both..." she glared at them. "... to death."

"Wow... As I expected from a Manipulator..." Biscuit mumbled, sarcastically. _"Really_ logical."

They walked for a while, Gon running happily ahead as the other two girls followed him from behind. Biscuit smiled slightly at the scene being unfold in front of her, tangling her fingers behind her back.

The couple was just too cute for her.

"For goodness sake, stop staring," Hitomi sighed in annoyment, without sparing her a glance. "You know, it's not polite."

The older woman grinned at her while Gon kept walking ahead, overhearing the conversation. Hitomi just raised an eyebrow at her master, in wonder.

"Can I ask you something?"

"I think you can, but your voice is freaking me out," the girl replied, being totally honest.

"How far are you two already?"

Hitomi nearly dropped the boy at the sudden question and she heard him groaning a little. Silently, she thanked gods above that he didn't wake up, because she wasn't sure if she had another valid and believable excuse to tell him.

Once she calmed down, she looked at Biscuit. Her face was all red.

"Excuse me?" she _tried_ to look indiferent.

"Really? Are you that slow? Biscuit gaped in disbelief. "Seriously,you _did_ confess already, at least, didn't you?"

"What the hell?!" she snapped.

"I'll take that as a no," the woman shook her head, before placing a hand over the girl's shoulder. "Well, let me tell you something."

Hitomi didn't say anything, just listened carefully.

"It's kind of true that there are many fish in the sea, but not totally. Believe me, you can't lose this chance," she smirked. "You have to act now. You'll never know how many time can pass until someone steals him from your grasp."

The girl kept silent, looking at the boy over her shoulder, thinking about it absentmindedly. She then realized what she was thinking about, and glared at Biscuit.

"You're just a slowpoke."

"Eh?"

Biscuit raised a finger and she instantly used Gyo, but blinked when there wasn't nothing there. Biscuit blinked as well, and rolled her eyes after realizing that.

"We are not training!" she sighed. "It's just an advise."

"Yeah, yeah, my bad."

"As I was saying, you can't be that slow over love things," she smiled at her. "And if the boy doesn't give the first step, you must give it instead. Most of the boys like independant girls after all."

"So, pray tell, what the first step?" she sighed, in annoyment.

"A quick peack in the lips."

Hitomi stood there for a while, motionless.

"AH?!" she reacted.

"Yeah, a kiss, that's the best way," Bisky smirked. "Taste it. Watch his reaction. If he likes it, confess to him your love. If he doesn't, too bad. Forget him and look for someone else, because that means that he wasn't good enough for you."

"That's..." she mumbled, not finding words to reply. "That's ridiculous!"

She then realized something. Slowly, she turned her head to Gon and looked at him, he was blushing even more then her. A tick mark appeared in her forehead.

"Wow..." that were his only words.

"Don't 'wow' at me!" she snapped, before turning at Biscuit, who was laughing at her. "And you, don't laugh!"

Hitomi heard something, a soft snore. She trembled slightly, in irritation.

"And you, don't sleep that peacefully in a time like this!" she shouted at the asleep boy.

Biscuit and Gon just sweatdropped, stepping away from her.

 _"She sure is in an excellent mood today..."_

* * *

Right after getting Luck Alexandrite, the fifty-fifth card, Gon got a call. The three kids looked at each other, before a voice started to sound.

"Yo, Kazsule here," he said, the younger ones stayed in silence for a while, not having idea who was talking. "I stole your Sword of Truth in Antokiba, remember?"

And like that, they instantly remembered him.

"Looks like you've got quite a collection of cards. Honestly, I'm quite surprised," he continued. "You've attained a level quite different from the last time."

"Yeah, yeah, we got that part already..." Hitomi said, annoyed. "What's your point?"

"Care to meet up? We need to talk."

"About what?" Gon asked.

"Actually, there's someone who's almost cleared the game," their eyes opened. "It's a group of four. Their leader is Genthru."

"The Bomber, right?" Biscuit commented.

There was a little pause.

"I've invited other groups as well," he concluded. "We'll meet at the plains 2km away from Masadora. Although we might just trade information, it'll be worthwhile."

Little before that, they went to the agreed place. The four sit on a rock, surrounded by another eleven players, counting Kazsule, of course, who was standing on the middle.

"Like I said, Genthru's team has almost completed the game," he announced. "When I last checked their ranking, they had ninety-six cards. We need to devise a plan immediately."

"If they have ninety-six cards, then they're left with just four others," Killua pointed out.

"Oh, thank you!" Hitomi teased the boy. "I could've never tell."

Killua glared at her while she stuck her tongue at him.

"The four cards left are Number 0, Number 2, Number 9 and Number 75," Kazsule continued.

Hitomi tensed a little, after knowing that the 75th card was Lucky Alexandrite, the one they had. That could mean that Genthru could go after them anytime to steal it... and even make their bodies blow up in a disgusting way.

 _"And I wanted to die a more graceful death..."_ she shook her head. _"Not just a bloodbath..."_

Kazsule resumed his speech.

"Number 0 will probably appear after someone has collected ninety-nine cards, so they are just left with three," he explained. "Of the three, we must obtain one and monopolize it. Thus preventing them from clearing the game. For that I plead for everyone here to work as a team."

The foursome looked at each other, while another short-haired woman raised her hand.

"I agree with your proposal," she said. "But I have my doubts about the members."

"Wait a minute, Asta," he said. "We abided by your restrictions, only teams with more than fifty different cards were invited. The six teams here clear that condition."

"That's granted, yet I also stated groups which we can benefit from," Asta then pointed at the kids. "Those kids being a benefit to us... is something I just can't buy."

Hitomi raised an eyebrow at her.

"We have a lot in common, then. You being a skilled player and a benefit to someone is something I can't buy either-"

She was shut up when Gon covered her mouth with his hand, preventing her to talk more time.

"We know of Genthru's abilities!" he said in a rush.

The place fell silent for a long while.

"We also have one of the cards they need," Killua added. "Still unsatisfied?"

"Quickly, tell us!" a woman from Asta's group asked. "About his abilities."

"What about you?" he asked. "You have to be of some use to us first, so prove it."

Hitomi smirked. It looked like the tables had been turned to their side.

"We have collected seventy-one cards, it's a whole lot more than what you'd have," Asta smirked. "For the information, I'll give you an A rank card. Fair enough?"

"Absolutely not. We can obtain A rank cards with our own strength," he replied, icy eyes looking at her. "Give us two S rank cards or information of similar value or we won't have a deal."

"Don't be too cocky, brat."

"Good! Happy dying then!" Hitomi stood up, jumping into the conversation, and waved her hand at them. "Let's go, guys!"

"Okay," Killua gave them a catlike smile.

The four stood up to leave, making Aster panic a little bit. She then gave them two S ranked cards, so Gon started to explain everything he knew about Bomber.

"Countdown is set by physical contact and a keyword," Gon said, and Asta's eyes opened slightly. "That means, you should never get too close to him."

"For real?" she mumbled. "He got me that time."

"Me too," another said, before turning around to see his comrades. "He touched us while we were negotiating."

"Oh, at that time!"

Biscuit looked at her students. "Looks like everyone recalls having Countdown placed on them," she said.

"This is a chance to get more cards!" Killua giggled a little, putting his hand to cover his mouth.

"Can't we just get away from them?" Hitomi said, with a disgusting face. "I'm not that eager to see them explode..."

Kazsule stood took his book off and started explaining again.

"Well, that settles it," he said. "Of the three cards they need Number 75 and Number 9 won't do."

"Number 2, The Scarlet Eyes, is at zero!" one of the players said and Hitomi tensed. "No one has it yet."

Hitomi narrowed her eyes and gazed at her feet. Her fist clenched, at the point of a only drop of blood pour from it.

However, she stopped doing so when she felt a warm one wrap around hers. She looked at her side to see Killua, smiling a softly at her, and she calmed down a little bit.

"May I ask..." she said, blushing a bit, but smirking. "Why are you holding my hand? Are you worried?"

Killua immediately let go of her hand and his face burned furiously. He looked at her, with a furious look, furrowing his eyebrows.

"I wasn't worried about you, big idiot!" he yelled, in a tsunderish manner. "I just... I just thought you would take off running to who-knows-where!"

"Calm down, calm down, Snowy," she chuckled. "I just was kidding."

He huffed, looking away. To be honest, even he had no idea why he had done that. His action was something he had not thought about. It was instinctive.

"Hitomi's reaction was not supposed to be like that!" Biscuit whined to Gon, pissed off. "Man! The atmosphere was so sweet!... And she had to mess it up with that spiteful mouth of hers..."

"It can't be helped," Gon sweatdropped. "Killua's a little shy to admit it though..."

They both looked at the two kids and released a long sigh.

"They are that slow that I want to cry..." Biscuit said under her breath.

* * *

After walking around Soufrabi they found out that there was treasure hidden somewhere on the island, the Scarlet Eyes. However, a group pirates came there to look for it. They were Razor and the Fourteen Devils, being fifteen of them. They were lucky though. The group in where they were fifteen as well.

They entered to a bar and found a group of pirates drinking alcohol who glared at them once they entered, saying that they had booked the place already.

"We came to negotiate," Kazsuru said. "Could you please leave this city?"

Hitomi facepalmed. _"Good, convincing way to kick a gang of freaking pirates out an island,"_ she thought. _"Are we going to give them roses after this?"_

As expected, they started to laugh hard. The biggest man stood up with a bottle of alcohol and a smirk plastered in his face.

"Why don't you call off the negotiations?" he said, while spilling alcohol around him. He then dropped a lighter and made a circle of fire. "If you get me out of this ring, I'll let see the boss. Our battle begins once you enter the ring. It doesn't matter how many of you attack at once."

"I just have to force him out the ring, right?" a bald guy said, walking there. "If it's a contest of strength, leave it to me, the Enhancer type."

Before entering, he used his Nen to make his muscles grew a little bigger in a lot of time, making both Hitomi and Killua realize that he was just a bluffer.

He ended up admitting defeat, as the other man tortured him with a evil smile in his face. Without being able to hold back anymore, he entered to the circle, kicked the pirate, freeing the man, and stepped out the ring with an angry look.

"He admitted defeat!" he shouted. "Why didn't you let him go?"

"Like I said, you lose when you step out of this ring. Even if the person admits defeat, it does not count as a loss," the pirate said. "You entered the ring, kicked me and went back out. You lose."

"Eh? Damn it!" his face fell. "W-Wait! Timeout! Timeout! Fight me one more time, please! Please, please!"

"I don't mind," he smirked.

Killua, however, got closer to Gon and whispered to him that he shouldn't show the crowd his technique. He then said that he was the next.

"I'll even give you a handicap," the guy said, confidently. "If you can budge me from this position, I'll let you win."

Killua smirked, wickedly.

Instead of walking inside the ring, he went to the counter and took a bottle of wine, saying that he would pay for it later. He then jumped on the man's back and poured it on his face. He used is electricity, making his head burn in flames, as he jumped back, still inside the circle.

"Don't come in!" Killua yelled at the people who wanted to help the guy. "This match isn't over yet. He said that if he moves from his position, he'll lose. But according to the rules, he won't lose unless he steps out, right?"

Without being able to take the pain anymore, he rolled in the floor and out the ring. After tuning the fire of his head off, he jumped to attack the boy, but one of his comrades stopped him by kicking him.

After that, they guide them with their leader, Razor, who challenged them to a sport competition. The four kids realized how weak the ones of their team were, so decided to lose on purpose just to gather information. Another guy, Goreinu, did the same and joined them.

"The strongest person here should be Kuroro..." Gon said, while looking at the list in his book in a table of a restaurant.

"But Kurapika was 100 percent sure that he's an imposter, so..." Killua commented.

"He knows his name," Hitomi pointed out, "He's from the Ryodan, that's sure."

"You never know..." Gon said. "If we do meet him, he might end up being someone else. But if he's a Ryodan, I won't team up with him. I'll just talk to him."

Killua and Hitomi gave him a confused look.

"Yeah, let's talk that person, even though he could be a serial killer!" she said, sarcastically. "We can also drink tea together and eat cookies, like good friends would do!"

Gon's eyebrow twitched a little.

"Why go through the trouble of confirming his identity?" Killua remarked. "He's definitely one of them."

"Even if he is one of them, I'd still like to know why he'd use Kuroro's name in this game," he said, stubbornly.

Goreinu just stared at them in surprise while Biscuit sipped in her tea, without paying them attention at all.

"Are you stupid?!" Killua yelled. "If he had a reason, it'd be an important one! There's no way he'd tell us!"

"Well, sorry for being stupid," a vein popped up in his head. "Since I _am_ stupid, I'd really want to confirm it!"

"Well curiosity killed the cat..." Hitomi mumbled. "Or the dog, in this case..."

Once outside, Gon took out a card from his binder.

"Okay, here we go," he said.

"Get on with it..." Killua placed his arms behind his head, pissing the other boy a little.

"Accompany on!" he shouted. "Kuroro Lucifer!"

And like that, they met someone they knew. Hitomi, however, would have prefer even a Spider in his place...

Oh, damn it.

"Oh, my... What unexpected guests."

The boys looked at the way of the voice and Hitomi paled at the sight of familiar clothes beside her. She snapped her head towards the person standing in a lake.

Her face then became red all of sudden at the sight of a naked Hisoka.

"Long time no see," he said.

Then something landed in his face, and soon he realized that it was his clothes. He looked at the red-faced Hitomi, who had thrown them to him.

"Put yourself something for goodness sake!" she yelled at him, angered. "At least if you are in front of a la-! I mean, _two_ ladies!"

"I missed you too, Hitomi-chan," Hisoka smirked. "Bold as always, I see."

"I _didn't_ missed you, damned clown," she remarked, doing her best to look at him in the face. "Psycho as always, I see!"

Hisoka didn't seem hurt, but amused, at her reply. The three kids then felt his murderous aura and they immediately activated their Nen.

"Just what I expected. Instantly assuming that battle stance," he said. "You've grown into ripe and tasty fruits... Looks like you've found quite a fine master. "

"Who is this pervert?" Goreinu asked. "Is he the 'Kuroro' guy?"

"I could've never described him better than that," Hitomi sweatdropped. "But no, he's not."

Hisoka looked at him and soon he realized that the master wasn't him. He then looked at the other girl, whose face flushed even more that Hitomi's. She ran away and hid behind a tree.

 _"It's her, huh?"_ he thought. _"She's probably a Transmuter type Nen user."_

Biscuit stared at Hisoka with a smile in her face. _"Wonderful eye-candy~!"_ she thought.

 _"Sorry, Leorio,"_ Hitomi thought, while looking at the girl. _"I really apologize for calling you a pervert... repeatedly times..."_

"So?" Hisoka asked. "What do you want from me, or rather, from Kuroro?"

"Who cares?! Dress up before my eyes start to bleed!" Hitomi yelled. She then looked at Biscuit and mumbled. "And before her nose starts doing so..."

Fortunately, he dressed up. Gon then asked him why was he there and he thought over it for a while. A little before that, he said that he was looking for Kuroro to tell him about the Exorcism technique.

"I had no leads. That's when I remembered that some Spiders were interested in this game," he told them. "Members of the Ryodan would know the location of their leader, so by using this name, chances are they'd approach me."

They looked at each other, understanding the situation. He then asked if that was all and got surprised when Gon told him that so it was.

"Umm..." Biscuit got closer to him, with her goody-goody girl façade. "Would you like to join us? We're recruiting as many strong people as possible."

"Sure..." he shrugged. "I've got nothing better to do anyway."

"Wait a minute, I'm against it," Goreinu said. "He's dangerous."

"He's right," Killua said. "Bisky, you don't know him, so..."

"Oh? That's not true!" she stood in front of them. "I happen to sense that he's very friendly."

Biscuit then drew something with her Nen, managing to use her back to block it from Hisoka's sight. They used Gyo and read it.

 _"He is lying."_

* * *

"You," Hitomi turned around and looked at Hisoka, pointing in front of her. "To the front, _now."_

"My, my," the magician laughed at her actions. "Why?"

"Because you are freaking us out," she said, seriously.

Hisoka shrugged before walking ahead them. "I'll get bored," he said, as Killua's eyes opened in realization.

"Who cares?!" she shouted annoyed, as Gon tried to calm her down.

 _"Nothing better to do... bored..."_ Killua thought. _"In other words Hisoka isn't searching for the Spiders... No, he found them already."_

Hitomi eyed the boy for a while and narrowed her eyes. She realized that he was looking at Hisoka, and Biscuit's words crossed her mind briefly. Killua had found out his lie.

 _"Could it be that... he meet the Ryodan already?"_ Hitomi thought. _"Oh my god, that means that the Exorcist is in Greed Island... And he is waiting for him!"_

After a bit an idea crossed Gon's mind. He then told his friends that they could try to recruiting Tsezugera, saying that he could have some comrades as well.

"But we haven't meet him in the game," Hitomi said, when she came up with an idea to unmask Hisoka. She hide her smirk as well as she could. "Maybe Hisoka did."

Killua looked at her, in surprise. Then Gon, without understanding her true intentions, asked Hisoka about that. He teached him how to use a card and he did so. Hisoka looked at the list.

"Book," he summoned his binder and looked at the list. "Oh, I have met him."

"Really?" Gon asked, as Hitomi walked towards them, trying to take a peek of it.

"Yeah," in her surprise, he let the kids look at it. "See here?"

Killua's eyes opened, as he ran to them. He read the list and, in his amazement, the names there weren't of the Ryodan.

 _"Maybe I was wrong..."_ he thought.

* * *

They meet with Tsezugera and his companions and they agreed. They now where nine people, so they decided to fill the empty spaces with random players who wanted to get home.

"So, the rest depends on our abilities," Killua replied. "Show us your Ren. We'll decide your recruitment thereafter."

"You just wanted to say that, didn't you?" Hitomi chuckled.

"My, my, haven't the tables turned?" he smirked. "Well, that's fine by me."

He took impulse and jumped really high, making the others gape in amazement. "If I use my full strength, I can get even higher," he said, confidently. "My vertical jump record stands at 16.8 meters."

"Let's try it too!" Gon suggested.

Copying Tsezugera's ability the three jumped in the air. The guy gaped in surprise, since they far surpassed his record.

Hitomi and Killua looked at each other and chuckled a little, since they had managed exactly the same. They looked at Gon, who was a little behind them.

"Looks like Hitomi and I win," Killua grinned, sitting in the air in Indian style.

"My, my!" Hitomi teased. "A little too high for you to reach?"

"Damn it, damn it!" Gon waved his arms, trying to get higher.

They then landed in the floor, and Gon continued to bug and bug them to have a rematch. Killua then turned around and told Tsezugera that he passed.

"One more time!" Gon asked.

"Alright," Killua said, annoyed.

The three jumped and the result was the same. Killua and Hitomi high-fived each other, as the boy gave Gon a feline smirk and the girl stuck her tongue at him.

"Damn it!" Gon cursed.

After that, they showed Tsezugera's group a paper where they had written eight of the sports that were played back then, deciding that they had to win all of them.

"I see..." Tsezugera said. "I'll take Beach Volleyball."

"I'll take wrestling," Goreinu said.

"Sumo's mine," Killua pointed at himself.

"Killua, Hitomi..." Gon kept annoying them. "Just one last time..."

"You're annoying!" Killua turned to him.

"Accept your loss for once!" Hitomi sighed.

The other people looked at the paper for a while, before one of Tsezugera's companions talked.

"Leave the boxing to me," he said. "I've got a plan to counter the opponent's Nen ability."

"Really?" Gon said. "So, I'll have to choose something else..."

"You're inexperienced in every sport, right?" Killua told the boy, remembering his performance last time in Soufrabi. "You were actually serious at free throw but missed everything."

Gon's face fell, while Hitomi laughed a little bit.

"Okay, I'll take care of free throw," Hitomi grinned.

"Bowling would suit me," Tsezugera's other friend said. "If I use my Nen, I can get a perfect score easily. I can even somewhat predict my opponent's movement."

"I'll try juggling the soccer ball," Hisoka said. "If I use my Bungee Gum I should be able to win."

"I'll take ping pong!" Biscuit smiled cheerfully.

"That means..." Tsezugera looked at Gon. "You'll be my beach volleyball partner."

Gon tensed at the mention of his name. He was about to being dragged out the place, when one of Tsezugera's comrade looked at his binder with a shocked expression.

"That's bad..." he said. "Genthru's team has... ninety-seven cards."

"So the cards they're missing are..." Gon trailed off.

"The Scarlet Eyes and Lucky Alexandrite," Killua completed the thought.

They all stayed in silence for a bit.

"Oh, shit," was all that Hitomi could say at the moment.

* * *

Excuse me for the _endless_ chapter!

Little reference from Teen Wolf here... please, ignore it for me?

I'm so sorry! Lame ability, yes, really lame. That speed-thing, however, is just something I _thought_ it could be handful for the dodgeball game, so can you bear with it for a little more? Sorry again...

 **JokeLover123** **:** Thank you for reviewing! I'm glad you liked that chapter and I hope you enjoyed this one as well :)

 **Kri:** Thank you :) You have here a little romance, but more will come... sometime... sorry. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter!

 **SoulXHunter:** I'm relieved that you liked it! Thanks for the 'woman advice' idea and I hope I didn't dissapoint you... Either way, thank you for reviewing and I hope you liked this chapter :)

 **keico0906** **:** Thanks for the review, and I'm glad you enjoyed the story until now! I wish you enjoyed this update :D

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for passing by here! Let's hope you had fun :D

See you all later!


	26. Sporting Event x Dodge the Ball x A Book

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 26: Sporting Event x Dodge the Ball! x The Book of Memories**

This time, things got easier for them at Razor's challenge. Tsezugera's comrades had already won boxing and bowling, so the team had already two wins.

"Hey guys, you can lose," Razor turned at the other pirates. "Leave the rest to me."

"Wait," the big guy who fighted Killua last time stopped him. "I'm not gonna take your orders anymore. From now on, I'll do as I please!" he then took off his hat, showing the burns on his head, before looking at Killua. "Brat! Let's take this outside! The burns you made itch like hell."

"Outside?" the boy smirked. "Aren't you mistaking it for a ring?"

"Playtime is over! I'll make sure that cocky mouth of yours never speaks again!"

"That violates your contract with me," Razor told him. "You'll be sent back to the cell, Bobobo."

Hitomi tried to not to laugh at it. _"Bobobo?"_ she thought. _"Foolish name for a foolish person."_

"I don't give a damn! I'm quitting this stupid game, too!" he yelled, before turning around to face his teammates. "Who's with me?"

No one tagged him. On the other hand, Razor emitted a ball with his Nen and threw it to him, killing Bobobo in the process. The filler players panicked a bit but calmed down when Tsezugera told them that they didn't have to play.

"Just a quick question," Killua asked, pointing at Bobobo's corpse with his thumb. "That guy is dead, so who'll be the sumo winner?"

"Oh, you can have the win."

"But... we haven't decided on our contender," he pointed out.

 _"Even though he kept bugging and bugging all these days saying that he was going to get the sumo guy..."_ Hitomi thought. _"Oh, well."_

"I don't mind who you make the winner."

Hitomi grinned, before patting a some random guy from the fillers in the back, who tensed. "Good match," she said. "Congratulations."

"That makes three wins," the boy declared.

"Well, my sport will be an 9 on 9 dodgeball battle," Razor said, after another two pirates took Bobobo away.

Then, he summoned nine players with his Nen, each one having a different number from zero to eight. Seven of them were going to be his teammates while the other - Number Zero - the referee. He then told them that every player was worth a point, so the team who won would have nine points.

The guys who were there to get back home complained, saying that they didn't want to play. They tried to convince them to lose on purpose, but they refused in fright of death.

"W-Wait, timeout," Killua tried to calm them down. "Let's think it through."

"Let's do it by ourselves. Since we're risking our lives, let's settle it with those who can handle it," Gon said, before turning to Razor. "You don't mind if we only have seven players, right?"

"No, I'm afraid that's not allowed," he replied. "You have to obediently play with nine people, as required."

"But in your team it's you and... _you,_ " Hitomi raised an eyebrow. "These things doesn't even count as people!"

"Players made by Nen are allowed," he said.

Meanwhile, Gon was feeling a little pissed off because of what happened before then.

"I know that telling a game character is pretty much useless," he said. "But he was your teammate, right?! What did that Bobobo guy do to deserve that?"

"Theft and murder. Rape and murder. And eleven other counts we know of to date."

"That was pretty... uh, informative," Hitomi raised an eyebrow. "You understand our words way too well to be a character, so I can tell you are a person. Who exactly are you then?"

"That man is one of this game's creators," Tsezugera told her. "He is a Game Master and, as you said, a real, living person."

Gon looked at him, in surprise.

"Bobobo and the rest are probably real convicts sentenced to death," he continued. "Given absolute obedience, Pro Hunters use them sometimes. Bobobo not only rebelled, but attempted escape. Severe punishment is to be expected. If he wasn't punished, his employer would be."

"This place is real," Hisoka said.

The four others gaped in disbelief.

"Real?" Gon blinked.

"I didn't notice..." Killua commented.

"I never suspected," Biscuit admitted.

"Now that you think about it, it's quite logical," Hitomi murmured. "Everything looked real because it _was_ real. And also it explains why you don't have any side-effects after leaving the game."

Razor then told Gon that he knew his father, which surprised the boy a little bit. The guy released Nen, freaking the filling-players out and they cowardly ran away. Goreinu then resolved the problem of numbers by summoning two huge gorillas - one white and the other black - with his Nen.

And like that, they had nine people against nine. Reiza proceed to explain the rules.

"The game starts with one outfielder and eight infielders," he explained. "The team that loses all its infielders will lose. However, one player in the outfield may come in once. Just say 'Back' to come in."

Gon nodded in understanding.

"We'll allow for ball cushioning in hitting judgment. For example, if the ball I throw hits someone, then hits another player, and touches the ground, then both are out." he explained. "Of course, if a teammate catches the ball, both are safe. However, if the ball I throw bounces off your player then hits mine and touches the ground, my player is out."

Hitomi smirked, it seemed pretty simple for her. However, when she and Killua looked at Gon, they realized that he was still trying to figure out what he meant.

"That means, either catch or dodge the ball," Killua explained simply.

"Ah..."

The girl then looked at Razor, raising a hand.

"Is a player out when the outfielder hits them?" she asked.

"Of course," he replied. "But only one player can come back in by saying 'Back'."

"Something else," Hitomi asked. "If the player manages to catch the ball in mid air, inside the field, but lands outside, are they out or in?"

"Out," he said. "However, if they manage to pass the ball to a companion on the field before touching the ground, well, that's another story."

Once the rules were explained, they stood in their side of the field, with the White Goreinu playing as an outfielder. Deciding to give her powers a chance, Hitomi's eyes shifted to red.

The referee threw the ball upwards and immediately jumped to grab it. The player number six, however, just returned to his side.

The boy passed the ball to Goreinu, who threw the ball to his opponents. It hit Number Four before the White Goreinu caught it.

"Good, that's one," Killua cheered.

Hitomi looked at the white gorilla. "Gimme," she asked.

He gave it to the girl and she jumped high before quickly throwing it. It hit Number Five effortlessly, before touching the floor. She then narrowed her eyes.

 _"Way too easy."_

The Nenju gave the ball to the man. Razor, on the other hand, smirked.

"Good, preparations okay," he said.

"Huh?" Goreinu asked. "What did you just say?"

"My preparations to defeat you are complete," he replied.

"Let's see you try!"

Goreinu then threw the ball towards Razor. He didn't move, but raised his left hand. After that, he caught it with frightening ease.

"Now then, the counterattack begins," Razor smiled.

He then shot the ball to Hitomi, and she saw it coming towards her like a bullet. Using her ability, she quickly got out the way, but soon realized that Goreinu was right behind her.

"Dodge it!" the girl yelled at him.

But no muscle moved in his body. He just froze in fright.

Seeing that he would die if the ball hit him, he used his Nen. When his teammates realized what happened, the ball had hit White Goreinu's face. They turned around, just to see the man panting outside the field.

The ball bounced and Razor caught it. "Nice rebound," he said. "So you can switch positions with your Nenju, huh?"

The Nenju was disintegrated and Hitomi paled at the thought of the shot hitting her at that that time. She tensed a bit, but looked in determination at Razor.

Razor on the other hand smirked at the sight of her eyes.

 _"So, Ging was right,"_ he thought. _"One of them had finally come."_

Then, Killua asked the referee if the Nenju was the one out and he said that was correct. But Goreinu could only enter in the field exchanging again positions with the Black Goreinu or using 'Back'.

Razor and the others started to pass the ball to in a lighting speed. Hitomi could be fast now, sure, but her vision wasn't. She and the others did their best to dodge it and avoid getting outfield.

But then, the four little ones paled.

"Tsezugera!" Killua and Hitomi yelled.

"Behind you!" Gon warned him.

He looked behind him and only had time to focus his aura before the ball collided with his back. The man fell in the ground and the ball bounced one time, before Killua managed to catch it. The boy looked at it in surprise.

 _"Heavy... just like a bowling ball,"_ he thought. _"After hitting Tsezugera and rolling on the floor, it still has this much force. This isn't good."_

Thanks to his use of Nen, Tsezugera remained alive. He, however, was too weak to play so he was out the field because of the rules. The remaining ones stared at the field, thinking of come up with an idea of what to do.

"We have to prevent them from getting the ball," Killua commented. "But, how?"

"If we only had a rope or something to hit them and get the ball back..." Hitomi crossed her arms in front of her chest, when it hit her. "Wait, he have something like that...! Or Hisoka has, more likely."

"Oh, right!" Gon said, turning to face the magician. "Hisoka."

"Okay," he smirked. "Pass me the ball, please."

Killua realized what they meant, so he passed him the ball. He then hit Number three and it quickly returned to his hand thanks to his Bungee Gum.

"Now, please entertain me," he said. "I just hope this doesn't end things."

"Question," Killua turned to Number Zero. "After the last infielder gets hit by the ball, can he use 'Back'?"

"No, when the last player is hit by the ball, in that instant there will no more infielders so you'll lose," he said. "However, at the time when the last infielder is hit an outfielder can simultaneously use 'Back' to return to the infield."

Hitomi nodded, before looking at the magician. "So, Closed-eyes has to be the last one," she pointed out.

"Yeah, I know," he said. "Here I go!"

He threw the ball again, and planned to take Number Six and Number Seven at the same time, but before that they merged together, formed Number Thirteen and grabbed the ball. Because of that, Hisoka wasn't able to get the ball back and gave up.

"Is that legal?!" Killua shouted at the referee, pointing at them.

"It is," that was his only answer.

"It is?" he trailed off.

Hitomi sighed. "We have to get it back," she said.

"Yeah, in order to stop the ball..." Killua said.

The three kids then nodded. They stood still using Ken, to receive the ball without problems. Razor looked at them and smirked.

"Using Ken?" he said. "Then, you probably won't die. Unless it hits you at the wrong place."

"Probably?" Hitomi mumbled. "Well, that was a great encouragement."

"Here I go... Gon," Razor's aura became bigger.

Razor gathered his aura on the ball and fired straight at Gon. In a flash, he managed to put his hands in front of his forehead and use Ko to protect himself, however, he didn't protect his feet and they lost grip. The ball threw him backwards and shot up to the roof. The boy collided painfully with the wall.

"Gon!" his two friends shouted in worry.

Killua, Hitomi and Biscuit ran towards him. He had his head dropped and maybe he was knocked out of cold. They couldn't blame him, though. That hit must had hurt quite a lot.

"Are you okay?" Biscuit asked.

He didn't move.

"Hey Gon, get a grip!" Killua called.

He didn't answer to that either, worrying Hitomi a little bit. She tensed a little, looking at the boy's unconscious form.

"For goodness sake, you're scaring me a little," she said, before gently touching his shoulder. "You are not dead, are yo-?"

"I'm completely fine!" he said, all of sudden. Because of the surprise, Hitomi nearly tripped and fell backwards.

" _Not,_ right?" Killua remarked.

 ** _SMACK!_**

"Why did you do that, Hitomi?" Gon whined.

"Can't you have a slow waking up like every normal person has?!" Hitomi yelled, pissed off. "I nearly took your place and died there, you know!"

He apologized briefly and the referee said that he was out because the ball touched the roof, but his team would have its possession since it was inside their limits.

"I'll be the one to say 'Back'," Gon said, determined.

"But you are-" Biscuit tried to argue.

"I will say it," he repeated.

"I wonder who will kill you first..." Hitomi facepalmed. "Your stubbornness or me."

Biscuit gave him a long look, before sighing in surrender.

"Alright," she finally said. "However, use 'Back' only when two or three infielders are left. Got it?"

"Yeah," he nodded.

After that, the game continued. Killua decided to buy time by passing the ball to Goreinu and receiving it back so Gon could rest a little.

Goreinu got the ball again and the memories of his shameful defeat crossed his mind, so he gritted his teeth a little. He took a couple of steps back and everyone looked at him in confusion.

"I just can't accept the fact that I got trashed," he said. "I'll return the favor, Razor."

"Huh?" Hitomi gasped, in surprise. "H-Hey! Wait a minute-!"

Before she knew, Goreinu threw the ball. In everyone's surprise, it was aimed to the Black Goreinu. However, in a split of second, everything was changed. Razor's face was hit in its place, and the gorilla was now in the man's spot.

"Take that..." Goreinu smirked. "You should be in the outfield yourself."

"You got me there," Razor said.

Killua just stared at the hit man. _"Even if he's out now, he'll just return infield later,"_ he thought. _"Yet forcing him to use 'Back' early in the game is good enough. The ball will still be ours, so-"_

Right before then, his thoughts were proven wrong. Number Two quickly jumped in Number Thirteen shoulder and caught the ball. A couple of seconds before landing outside the field, he passed it to Number Eight.

And Goreinu was hit in his face again, in a pathetic way. He was knocked unconscious in the floor, and Black Goreinu vanished in the air. The ball didn't bounce, it just fell right in Razor's hands.

"That's a pretty good technique," Razor commented. "You should polish it."

"Hey!" Biscuit shouted. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Huh? There's no rule against me passing to an opponent," he replied. "Not to mention that according to the rules, attacking the face is legal. That's why the previous attack I took was valid. If the ball touched the ground, I would be out."

The girl trembled slightly, pissed off at the man. Hitomi, on the other hand, just stared at Goreinu for a bit before passing a hand through her hair, sighing.

 _"His wounded pride ended up hurting itself even more..."_ she thought. _"Well, what can you expect from a fool with the face of a monkey?"_

They then told them that if Goreinu woke up before the infielder number became zero, he and Black Goreinu could keep playing... Hitomi rolled her eyes at it.

 _"As if,"_ she thought. _"After a hit like that, I highly doubt he can start running around the place and call some gorillas to join him."_

Next turn was Razor's team, who analyzed all of them. After a while, he threw the ball in a straight line, and they avoided it as well as they could. An outfielder caught it little after that and threw it again to a comrade.

 _"They are too fast,"_ Biscuit thought.

They kept passing the ball around for a little time when Biscuit accidentally dodged the ball in a wrong way. Everyone's eyes wide opened when they saw her.

 _"At this rate..."_ Hitomi thought, as anger slowly burned inside her. Her eyes turned in the highest scale of scarlet at the thought of losing a friend. "Bisky!"

She ran in her top speed and kicked the ball at her full power. She then jumped to stop it, but it hit violently her belly. Hitomi resisted the urge to shout in pain, because she saw the roof right behind her back.

"Hitomi!" Gon and Killua yelled.

 _"I can't get out... like this at least,"_ she thought, before shouting. "Killua!"

She quickly impulsed the ball with the metallic sound of her bracelet. He caught it pretty fastly and she held herself in the border of the hole that Gon had made before then. She sighed, in relief.

"Now, then," he smirked, "Here I go!"

Killua then threw the ball and hit Number Nine, and he was out. Unluckily, it bounced once in the floor, before Razor caught it, meaning that they had it now.

"Yay!" Hitomi cheered despite of that. "One more to go!"

She then swinged a little bit in her place and let go of the wood. She stood in her feet, but suddenly a huge wave of pain ran through body and she winced a bit.

 _"I'm the most idiotic person I'd ever known! I activated it... without even realizing,"_ she almost facepalmed. _"Next time, I should watch my emotions a little more..."_

Killua looked at the girl for a seconds and then furrowed a little. He swore that her eyes shifted back to her original violet, before returning to a rather dull red. Like she wasn't going to hold in for a long time.

"Are you okay?" he asked her calmly, hiding his worry.

"Of course," she lied, standing up. "Just a little sore, that's all."

Killua stayed silent and raised an eyebrow at her.

"Hitomi?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I'd told you this before, but..." he scratched the back of his head. "You _really_ need to learn how to lie."

Her body tensed a bit, before relaxing slightly, since she knew that, deep inside, he was worrying a little for her. Hitomi gave the boy a sweet smile.

"Don't worry, I'm oka-"

A light tap in her belly stopped her in mid sentence and her warm expression got transformed into one of pain as a soft yelp escaped from her lips. She clutched her wound with hands and grimaced, as her eyes watered a little.

"Oh, yeah," Killua replied, sarcastically. "You are way _too_ fine."

"Shut up!" Hitomi yelled, a little embarrassed. "Just... _Focus,_ okay?"

"Whatever."

And like that, she walked far away from him. Razor bounced the ball a couple of times, analyzing the situation.

Now there was three against four, but it wasn't an equal situation, since the kid's team was the one under pressure. Half of the players retired, an injured Gon as the only outfielder. The enemy, on the other hand, had secured the outfield, so they could attack from anywhere. And Razor with a 'Back' option, playing as an infielder, holding the ball.

Oh, just wonderful.

"Well then," Razor said, making all of them tense in response. "Who will be next?"

He then threw the ball straight at Killua, who eyed it for a second. Hitomi on the other hand looked at the situation and panicked. Biscuit and Hisoka were standing in line.

 _"What should I do? Can I catch it?"_ Killua narrowed his eyes. _"No, it's impossible. I can't catch it, so I'll have to evade it..."_

"Killua!" Hitomi yelled.

In fear of him dodging left, she quickly tackled him to the right and avoided the hit. Killua then flinched when he looked at the ball changing its direction.

"Bisky!" he warned her.

The girl instantly jumped out the way, while Hisoka just bended backwards to dodge it. However, next to him, Number Five caught it and was about to attack him while he was in a position in which it was impossible to escape.

Luckily enough, he was able to activate his Bungee Gum. He was pushed back a little but managed to stay infield. His face was bleeding a little though.

Hitomi didn't say anything, as she walked away from Killua. She was trying to hide the fact that she was awfully angry with the man.

 _"Even if Hitomi wasn't fast enough to push me out the way, maybe I could've dodge it without a scratch,"_ he furrowed his eyebrows, as he gritted his teeth. _"But I could've also dodged to the left. If that were the case... I would've been caught."_

"Player Biscuit is out!" the referee shouted. "Please move outfield."

Their heads all snapped at her direction, swearing that she had dodged it. The skirt part of her dress was burnt, hit by the ball.

"Clothes are considered part of one's body... am I right?" she said, a little irritated to herself. The referee nodded. "My loss."

Hitomi gave Biscuit a long look, as she passed by her. She growled a little, before going to the referee, really pissed off.

"Couldn't you say that a little later?" she said, angrily. Number Zero, as expected, didn't answer her question. "Hey, answer to me!"

The Nenju didn't answer to her. Her eyebrow twitched a bit, before turning to Razor.

"You should program that thing again," she told him. "He is leaving off some important rules."

"Really?" he said. "I thought it would be obvious."

"Well, it's not," she replied. "So, open your eyes for once - in a literally and not literally way - and notice when someone doesn't get all of your little damned points! Therre are only three of us because of your pathetic assumptions!"

"Oh, sorry," his smile didn't disappear, pissing the girl a little more. "But don't worry. There won't be three of your for a lot more."

Hitomi blinked twice. "What do you-?" she was about to ask.

"BACK!" the shout cut her sentence.

She then noticed Gon walking infield. She glanced at Razor, whose smirk widened, before softly growling and walking closer to her friends.

Meanwhile, Biscuit passed by Gon, who had his forehead already bandaged.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah," he just nodded.

"Listen," Biscuit turned around. "Don't overdo it."

"Yeah."

Biscuit narrowed her eyes. "What's one plus one?" she asked.

"Yeah."

Hitomi bit a laugh, struggling to remain serious. _"He sure is paying a lot of attention to her,"_ she thought.

"This is useless..." Biscuit shook her head. She then slapped him in his back. "Okay, defeat him even if you have to die!"

"Osu!" he nodded in determination.

Hitomi then shook her head at his response. _"Was he listening or not?"_ she facepalmed.

Gon then walked to his team and nodded once again when his friends asked if he was okay. However, Hitomi could tell that he was far from being okay. He was really angry.

"I noticed something," Hisoka commented. "When it's relayed by the outfielders, the ball's power diminishes," he then showed them his hand. "Without using Ko, only two fingers got hurt."

"That means if we watch out for Razor's throws we can avoid heavy damage," Killua concluded. Hisoka nodded.

"If we do that, it won't feel like we've won," Gon said, seriously.

Hitomi just raised an eyebrow, giving him a long look.

"Well, Gon, you know... If we _don't_ do that, it won't feel like we've won either," she commented. "It would feel like we've died, more likely..."

"She's right! Quit kidding, Gon! Unless we win using all means, it won't count," Killua agreed. "Cool down, idiot!"

"Aren't you two mad?" Gon asked, making both of them eye him for a moment. "If Hitomi hadn't pushed you, you could've dodged left, Killua. Then, you'd be dead now... Right?"

Killua narrowed his eyes a bit, understanding his point. Hitomi looked at said boy with the corner of her eyes, clenching her fists a little. She was a little mad at the thought of him dying because of a ball.

"I'm really mad right now," Gon continued. "I won't just win... I'll completely defeat him."

"Whoa, calm down," Hitomi said. "You don't have to worry, because Hitomi-sama already protected the damsel in distress, so he isn't dead."

A vein popped up in Killua's forehead. "Damsel in distress... As if..." he mumbled.

"Sounds like you have a plan," Hisoka handed Gon the ball. He nodded, taking it.

"Killua, can you stand over there?"

Hitomi watched in curiosity as Gon made his friend stand still, holding the ball in front of him a little clueless of what was that for. Gon then focused Nen in his fist.

Killua finally got it and tensed a little more.

"First comes Rock!" he chanted. "Rock, Paper... Rock!"

He hit the ball and it fired like a cannon ball. It immediately hit Number Thirteen and he was pushed out the field, and out the game. It bounced and Number Two caught it.

Hitomi tensed a little.

"Well, here I go!" Razor shouted, before throwing it.

It went directly to Gon, who focused Nen in his hands again. However, from the side, Hitomi jumped and caught it, pressing it against the floor.

"Thanks for that, Hitomi," Gon said.

"That was a good move!" Killua commented. "How did you catch it?"

"It's just way too easier to catch it from another front. I should've realized it later," she turned around and looked at Killua, passing him the ball. "Here."

As soon as the ball touched his hand, he winced involuntarily, before trying to hide the pain he was hiding. Hitomi realized that, though, and narrowed her eyes a little.

"Alright! Let's give it another shot!" he shouted to Gon, cheerfully. "Give Razor one big enough to bust him!"

Gon was a little surprised at his determination, but accepted anyway. He used his technique again and it shoot right at the man.

Razor slid into his receiving pose - more like a volleyball one - and waited for it. The ball ended up being thrown upwards. Hitomi panicked at the thought of him catching it, so she turned around.

"Hisoka!" she called.

"Yeah, I know," he replied. He used his Bungee Gum and retrieved the ball. He then looked at the enemy, "No good, no good. You must firmly hold onto the ball."

He was out, but he quickly used back again. Hitomi panted a little, but hide her tiredness after that. She could've never tell that keeping her eyes red would be that difficult.

 _"I must endure, I'm not the most injured after all..."_ Hitomi thought. _"Gon must've used nearly all his Nen in these two attacks, Hisoka can't use his right hand anymore and Killua... well, his hands are another story."_

Meanwhile, Biscuit asked Hisoka the ball. She then hit Number Two, leaving Razor all alone in the field, but with the ball in his hand.

"Timeout!" Tsezugera called.

They then asked them to come with him to talk, right before asking the referee if it was allowed leaving the field for the player's own decision. He said yes, but that they couldn't return after then.

"Gon, if you move outfield, I can hold the ball for you," he said. "Killua's hands are far too damaged. They're probably in no condition to hold the ball firmly. I can move my aura around my body at lighting speed. Let me hold the ball, so you can bring Razor down from the outfield. That's the only way we can win."

"That won't do," Killua replied and Gon nodded. "That would mean that we ran away."

"Now is not the time to say such things!" he snapped.

However, his pain emerged once again. He placed his hand in his wound and coughed a little bit.

"Don't push yourself, old man. You're in a pretty bad condition too, right?" Killua said. "I'm fine. It's not as bad as you think."

Hitomi narrowed her eyes a bit.

"Good thing, then," she fake-smiled him. She raised her hand. "Then, high-five me!"

Killua flinched at the thought and glared at her, hiding unconsciously his hands further in his pockets. A smile drew itself in her features, pissing him off a little bit.

"What are you trying to do with that?" he tried to play dumb.

"Exactly that," she replied. "Showing how liar you can be."

"I'm not lying," he assured. "I'm fine-!"

He stopped in mid-sentence when Biscuit grabbed his arm and pulled his hand out of the pocket in which it was stuffed. They all winced at the sight of it. It was at least twice bigger than it used to be. Also, it was all in a red color, with a lot of scratches and burns.

"Look, you probably can't feel a thing except pain!" Tsezugera shouted.

Killua just looked away, breaking free from Biscuit's grasp.

"Why can't it be me?" Hitomi pointed at herself. "My hands are way more fit for this, at least more than Killua's at the moment."

"You can't, Hitomi," Killua told her. "You've been the one stopping Razor's attacks all the match. We'd be all out if your hands gpt injured like... well... mine."

Hitomi gazed at her feet, frustration getting all of her.

"I can do it! I can handle one more shot," Killua snapped before facing Gon. "Gon, let me do it, okay?"

"That's impossible," the man argued. "Gon, you tell him."

Gon too, just looked at the floor for a long time.

"I... knew all along. I knew about Killua's hands... all this time," he confessed, surprising everyone. "Tsezugera-san, I'm sorry but I won't step outfield. The ball holder... has to be Killua. Nobody but Killua will do."

Killua was just surprised at that statement. Hitomi, however, wasn't. She just smiled for him.

"Even if it's Bisky or Hisoka I probably can't hit with my all," he confessed. "I could focus and strike with my all because Killua held the ball for me."

The boy then released a soft laugh, just to hide the embarrassment he was feeling. "Well, understand now, old man?" he said. "Just go back and rest."

At the end, Tsezugera gave up and left. Hitomi give her friends a long look before shaking her head, with a small laugh in her features.

"Stupid young men's friendship," she mumbled under her breath.

"Oh, my, are you jealous by any chance?" Killua teased her.

"Oh, yeah, I'm dying of jealousy because I didn't recklessly get my hands as red as my eyes," Hitomi remarked, sarcastically.

"But you know you're still part of us, right?" Gon asked.

"Got it... got it..." Hitomi sighed. "Can't we just stop with the sickly sweet stuff?"

They both laughed and walked away. Hitomi grinned, but growled after she took a step. Her vision was getting a little dizzy.

 _"Damn,"_ she cursed to herself, feeling already a little light headed. _"That's no good."_

She forced her eyes to stay scarlet, as she stood behind her team, since it was Razor who had the ball. She had to catch it. If not, she wasn't going to forgive herself that easily.

"Gon. Don't tell me you forgot that, unless we get the ball from Razor, we can't attack," Killua told his friend. "We don't know if Hitomi can catch it. She's not in top condition either."

"She'll do just fine," Gon assured. "She doesn't look that bad-"

 _ **THUD!**_

They turned around, just to see that Hitomi had collapsed in the floor. Not long after that, she got up like nothing and blinked a few times, placing a hand on her head.

 _"Let's hope they didn't see me..."_ she thought

"Hitomi!" Killua and Gon called, running up to her.

 _"Oh, shit,"_ her eyebrow twitched.

She however, tried to play dumb. She scratched the back of her neck, grinning sheepishly, as they reached her, along Hisoka.

"Are you okay?" Gon asked her.

"Yeah," she released a soft laugh. "I just tripped."

Gon bought it, and released a long sigh in relief. Killua, however, didn't. He scowled a little bit, still staring at her eyes.

"You're not okay," he said, making her twitch slightly. "You didn't trip. You've just fainted."

The other boy looked at him in surprise and then to the girl, frowning in worry as well. Hisoka just stared at the situation, without saying anything.

"What are you talking about?" she thoughtlessly jerked, smiling sheepishly. "Don't you see I'm good as always?"

"Then, why are your eyes violet then? Weren't they scarlet a couple of seconds ago?" her eyes opened slightly after noticing it. "I bet you can turn them anymore."

Hitomi tried to do so. Her eyes shifted in scarlet for a bit, before returning to their original color. A sharp pain ran through her head as she placed her hand on it.

"So she can't run fast anymore," Hisoka commented. "What are we gonna do then?"

They thought about it a little. An idea crossed Hitomi's mind, making her smirk at it. The others looked at her, waiting for her explaining what was going on.

"I have an idea... it's a little risky though," she said.

She then told them all of it, making Hisoka give her an amused laugh and Gon a wide grin. Killua just raised an eyebrow.

"Always coming up with crazy ideas," he said, under his breath. "Like when we were in Yorkshin."

"Yeah, the blackout was a crazy thing, but it ended up saving your skin, didn't it?" she chuckled, walking by the boy and giving him a soft tap in the shoulder. "I'm counting on you too, Killua."

Razor then snapped his fingers, as the Nenju returned to his body, meaning that he was gathering all his strength for the next shot.

And like that, the plan started. Hitomi stood behind Gon, who had his hands stretched to grab the ball. She then leaned her back in Killua's and Hisoka stayed behind them, using his Bungee Gum.

Finally, the enemy threw the ball upwards and jumped high in the air, slamming it down like a volleyball game. And it hit Gon's hands, making Hitomi use her hands to support his back, but supporting her body as well by pushing herself in Killua's back, as he did the same thing with hers to support himself as well.

Tsezugera just gaped in amazement, getting the strategy.

 _"Gon catches the ball... Hisoka surrounds it... Killua and Hitomi supports them,"_ he thought. _"That's pretty clever."_

At the end, the four got pushed a lot, but caught the ball still inside the field. Gon grinned at their friends, as he held the ball. They smiled back, panting slightly and sitting down in the floor, without any energy left.

"HE CAUGHT IT!" their teammates cheered.

"He?! You mean _we!"_ Hitomi turned at them, pissed off a little. "We did a lot more than him, damn ignorants! If it wasn't for my master plan, he'd be still stick in that wall like a freaking fly!"

After releasing a long sigh, Killua took the ball and held it in front of him once again.

"Killua, I'm giving it my all," Gon warned, as his aura leaked in all his body.

"Of course," Killua smirked. "If you hold back, I'll pulverize you."

Gon just nodded, as he slid into his classical attack stance.

"First comes Rock..." he chanted. "Rock, Paper... Rock!"

The ball was fired and flew at full speed at Razor. He, however, didn't try to dodge it. He put himself in a receiving pose once again. He reflected it and was shot back to Gon.

"Gon, dodge it!" Tsezugera yelled.

Hitomi looked at Gon, panicking a little bit. She knew the boy way too much to know that his stubbornness wouldn't allow him to do so. He didn't want to win like that.

But he didn't do anything, just fainted in the floor just in time to avoid being hit, surprising everyone. However, at the same time, it was to be expected. He'd released a lot of aura in the last attack.

 _"I knew that he had an incredible luck at his side but..."_ Hitomi raised an eyebrow, still smiling in amusement. _"That's too much."_

"It's not over yet!" Hisoka smirked behind them. He extended his hands forward, with the space between them covered with his Bungee Gum. "We're going to win undisputedly, right, Gon?"

The ball hit the gum, stretching it. Hisoka moved his arms around, making the ball bounce back at Razor, who tried to receive it once again.

Things didn't go that smoothly for him, though. The ball wasn't reflected, but got sticking in his hands and pushing him back.

"My Bungee Gum has properties of both rubber and gum," he reminded him.

For everyone's surprise, when the ball stopped, Razor was outside the bounds.

"Catching the ball outfield is illegal," the referee said. "Player Razor is out! Therefore, Player Gon's team wins the match!"

They all started to cheer in joy. Hitomi grinned at Killua.

"We did it!" she cheered, as she slapped his hand. He groaned in pain, holding his sore hand with the other one. "Oh, sorry, does it still hurt?"

"You did it on purpose!" he yelled, pissed off.

"Ah, was that obvious?" she sheepishly smiled.

Killua then swore he was definitely going to kill her one of these days. Meanwhile Gon woke up and looked around, cluelessly.

"Geez," Killua looked at Hisoka. "In the end, he stole the limelight."

"Everyone contributed to make it possible," he said. "This is what's called a team victory."

"Somehow, those words don't suit you," Gon commented.

"Yeah, I think I prefer the creepy-clown act," Hitomi sighed. "This goody-goody clown is freaking me more than the other one."

Hisoka just raised an eyebrow, giving them an amused smile. Razor then told them that they were going to leave the island, reminding them their task.

"But before, I'll answer your questions about Ging, Gon," he said. "And I also have to tell you something, Hitomi. About the eyes."

She was surprised at this, but reminded silent. He told them to talk in other place so they followed him at the other side of the place.

"To set things straight first, Ging is not here and I don't know where he is," he said. "But I can tell you he used to be my friend. I used to be a criminal. He arrested me and then contracted me to play here. And that day... he brought with him a item from the real world... The Scarlet Eyes."

 _"Why is that for?" Razor asked, looking at the pair of eyes._

 _"It can bring some interesting people to the island, and even one of them. I will prove that they still exist," Ging grinned like a child. "Who knows? Maybe they will come with my son here, to Greed Island. Oh, also, when he comes here don't hesitate to knock him down, okay?"_

 _"So, I can kill him if I want?"_

 _"Don't underestimate him," he smirked, his blue eyes shining with confidence. "He's my kid, you know."_

Hitomi blinked. So, Gon's father had brought them for fun?

"Before you say something, Hitomi, I can't be sure if he did that only for fun. I can tell that item has Nen of its own, and it didn't disappear after death," he said. "Also, he asked for program there some strange book and a house as well, his favourite one back when he got at the massacred Kuruta Clan. Who knows why. He's weird."

"Book?!" she yelled, almost getting what was he talking about. "What book?!"

"Calm down, you can see it for yourself," Razor said. "However, just two of you can go there."

Hitomi turned at her teammates, who had been overhearing the conversation all along. It was crystal clear that she was going to be one of them. The others glanced at the other two kids, saying that it was okay for whoever of them to go.

Killua looked at her and then to Gon. He was kind of unsure of what to do.

"Go with her, Killua," Gon smiled, making Killua look at him in surprise. "I want to ask Razor more about my father."

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yeah, just go."

He then nodded and looked at Hitomi, who was gazing at the floor without believing the situation. She was finally going to find a pair of eyes, like she had promised.

But, she wasn't feeling prepared for this.

She then felt a hand on her shoulder, like silent support. Hitomi looked at Killua's sincere smile and she did the same thing. She just couldn't express with words how grateful she was feeling to him, Gon, and everyone else.

"Over here," Razor said, meaning them to follow.

There was a huge door, and Hitomi looked at it for a long while. Seeing that she wasn't going to move at all, the boy took the initiative and opened it. She followed not long after that.

"What the hell is this?" Killua asked.

She then gaped at it. There, in front of her, was a huge wooden house which she recognized almost instantly.

"That's..." she mumbled. "... my house."

The boy jumped in his spot, but didn't say anything. She, however, walked inside and he followed after her. She looked around in amazement and surprise.

"It's exactly like that!" she exclaimed, before running somewhere.

"Hey!" he shouted, trying to catch her up. "Wait up!"

They both investigated the house, and Hitomi swore that her heart was beating like mad. The kitchen, Kurapika's room, her parents' room... everything was exactly like five years ago. So, that meant...

"Where are you going?" Killua asked.

"Upstairs!" she shouted, getting the stairs. "Where my room used to be."

Killua arrived at the room not long after that and examined the room. It was pretty tidy, or a lot more than he had expected it to be. Seeing Hitomi now, he thought it would be a little more disorganized, books everywhere and clothes too.

However, that was different. Clothes on their place, the even books were organized by colors over a shelf. But, something caught his eye...

There was a huge, wooden wardrobe. He watched as Hitomi walked towards it and placed a hand over the doors, before opening her.

Memories of a little girl, shouting for help in silence and crying, praying to not been seen, were triggered in her mind. She scowled a little, trying to forget about her younger self, but just couldn't

"What's that?" Killua asked.

"That's where Pairo hid me at that time, to protect me," she smiled bitterly. "Risking his own."

His eyes flew opened, before they softened a little. He looked away from the sad girl, and noticed something else by doing so. There was a book.

He got closer to it and stared at it.

 _"Journey to the New World - East Edition."_

"Hey, Hitomi..." he murmured. "Maybe you should take a look of this..."

Hitomi turned around and she froze for a bit at the sight of that old, worn book. She went towards it and slowly touched the front.

It was Shelia's gift.

The memory of she riding it, along with her brother and Pairo broke her heart, but a smile appeared in her features because of the happiness she used to have at these moments.

"With it all started. This is the book that awoke my and my brother's desire to be a Hunter... from where we met the outside world," she told Killua. "Thanks to this thing, I was able to meet you all. Leorio, Gon, Bisky.. and you. That's why I should be thankful to it."

Killua was surprised at first but smiled softly. He looked away, blushing in embarrassment.

"Now that I think about it, it was Pairo the one who found the girl who gave it to us. In a way, he's responsible of this," she closed her eyes, trying to not to cry. "So... thank you, Pairo... my friend."

She then felt a warm hand cover the one she had in the book, making the girl open her eyes to see a boy. Brown hair and big chocolate eyes looking at her.

The girl blinked and her eyes watered.

"Thank you too, Hitomi," he smiled.

"Pairo?" she murmured, in confusion.

Killua tensed slightly and just stared... and stared. If that Pairo guy was dead, what was he doing here? It was freaking him a little.

And then remembered Razor words about this.

 _"So, that's because of Pairo's Nen? The Nen he had never developed..."_ Killua thought. _"Trapped inside the eyes... Was he waiting for someone like Hitomi to find them?"_

Hitomi couldn't talk nor think. She froze upon the sight of the friend that had died a long before, in front of her eyes, smiling as warm as she remembered.

He put something in her hand and gently closed it.

"I want you to have it," he said. "You, and only you."

"But-" she wanted to talk. But her words just died down in her throat.

"Take care... and say hi to Kurapika for me, is that okay?" he smiled, as he started to fade away in front of her, slowly backing off.

That was when Hitomi reacted. She took a couple of steps forward.

"Pairo!" she yelled, trying to run after him. "PAIRO!"

"Hitomi!" Killua shouted, grabbing her arm and stopping her. "Stop it!"

"Let me alone!" she tried to break free.

Pairo looked at her and his sweet smile widened, breaking Hitomi's heart even more. He moved his lips while he whispered her something.

"Please, for now on, be my eyes and see the outside world, the one that we always wanted to see the three together. Enjoy it at its fullest," he said. "And when we see again, like I told Kurapika that time, I'll ask you something too..."

Her eyes opened at it.

"Was it fun?"

And then Hitomi stretched her hand at him, but he vanished in thin air before she could even touch him. When she realized that he was gone forever, she let her arm fall limply at her side.

"Hitomi..." Killua murmured, sadly but without an idea of what to do.

He then felt a pair of arms wrapping around his neck, and quickly realized that it was Hitomi. She buried her head in his shoulder, as she let the tears she had been trying to hold roll down her cheeks.

Killua didn't know what to do or say at a situation of that. The only thing he managed to do was hug her back tightly.

* * *

End of the chapter!

I have a couple of things to apologize about (again). First, as always, horrible, long chapter and lame end. Second thing, I won't be updating next week :( You see, I have a camp with my school and I won't be able to publish anything...

Either way, that's life. I can't help it.

 **JokeLover123** **:** Yeah, you were the first one XD Love the name 'killutomi' and I'm glad you liked it! Thanks for reviewing and I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

 **Elisablackcat** **:** Hehe, thanks XD Also, thanks for reviewing and I hope you liked this update!

 **Kri:** Thank you for leaving a review! Hope you enjoyed it :)

 **S** **oulXHunter:** Sorry if the chapter is too long, but the fight against Razor is alrady over. Anyway, thanks for the review and I wish you enjoyed this chapter :)

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for passing by this fic! Let's hope you had fun :)

See you all later!


	27. Tag Game x The Quiz x Game Clear!

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 27: Tag Game x The Quiz x Game Clear!**

"How was that?" Gon asked, as soon as they arrived at the place.

Now feeling better, Hitomi smirked, taking a small box out of her pocket. She looked at her three friends and nodded, before opening it.

 _"Finally,"_ she smiled. _"Got them."_

There they were. A small vial with a pair of bright, scarlet eyes. Hitomi released a long sigh, before touching it. It quickly became a card and she held it tightly..

"Alright, we've got the Scarlet Eyes!" Gon cheered.

"Let's hurry and make copies of it with Clone," Killua suggested, while Hitomi nodded and Biscuit just eyed the card, feeling a little excited at the sight of it.

"We'll take the copies," Goreinu said.

"Yes, the original should go to you four," Tsezugera said.

The four smiled at each other, before realizing Hisoka walking away even without a copy of the card. They looked at him in confusion.

"It was fun," he said. "I'm leaving now."

"Won't you join us?" Killua asked. _"I'm also curious about the Spiders' movements."_

"You guys will continue gathering cards, right?" he replied. "I'm not interested, so just contact me when something pops us. I'll use Accompany or Magnetic Force to fly over."

And then he walked away. Hitomi blinked, still remembering his last words like Killua for a while.

"Ah!" they both exclaimed.

"Huh?" Gon looked at them.

"That liar!" Killua ruffled his own hair, in irritation.

"But what happened, guys?" Gon inquired.

"We didn't use Magnetic Force with Hisoka, did we?" Hitomi's eyebrow twitched. "And then he said that he knew nothing about spell cards."

That's when Gon finally understood their point.

"As suspected, he's definitely hiding something," Killua said.

"Among liars, there are types that tell useful lies and others that tell useless ones," Biscuit explained, looking at Killua. "You and I belong to the former type, while he's of the latter. If you think too hard, you'd only get stumped."

Killua just kept silent, still not convinced at Hisoka's behaviour.

"We've something to discuss with you," Tsezugera told the kids, changing the topic all of sudden.

"We've decided to join forces," Goreinu said. "How about joining us too?"

"If my hunch is right, we'll be fighting Genthru's team in the near future. But in terms of strength, we're at a great disadvantage. Ignoring my wounds and lack of training, I''m still no match for them. That's the impression I got from your description of Bomber's skills. Right from the start, he's been using Nen to kill all this time. His battle tactics are completely different than ours. That's why..."

Tsezugera's book popped up all of sudden, saying that a player used Contact on him. The kids looked at each other in worry.

"It's been a long time, hasn't it?" the voice said. "Guess who..."

They all tensed, recognizing that voice.

"Genthru," Tsezugera said in surprise. "What do you want?"

"I'm so honored that you remember me," he said. "First let me congratulate you for getting the Scarlet Eyes. I just confirmed it using List. So, let's make a deal. I'll guarantee your lives in exchange for... the Scarlet Eyes."

"Don't kid with me!" he snapped.

"If we have a deal, be at Masadora's entrance within an hour by yourself," Bomber warned. "If you don't show up, I'll consider it a declaration of war, so I'll just have to forcefully take the card from you. It's useless to run, you know? Because I have plenty of Accompany."

Tsezugera didn't say anything. He just growled softly.

"Asta, Amana, Manheim, Nick Cue, Souheil and Kazsule. Weren't they part of your group of fifteen?" Bomber asked. "Check your binders. There are no longer here... in this world."

No one said anything for a while.

"Book," Gon summoned his binder.

They all looked at Gon's contact list for said members, but they never found them. Hitomi, who was peering at it over the boy's shoulder cursed under her breath, doing her best to control the anger she was feeling. She sighed, managing to calm down a little.

However, Gon didn't have such a luck.

"GENTHRU!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

Hitomi froze a little. She didn't expect that sudden outburst from him.

"Huh?" Genthru asked, confused. "Who are you?"

The, girl on the other hand, grimaced.

 _"Oh, please, I beg you,"_ she thought. _"Don't do what I think you will do-"_

"Gon Freecss!" he shouted. "I'm taking you on!"

Biscuit and Killua gaped while Hitomi facepalmed hard. As expected, Gon was now messing up with the scary guy... again.

"Gon, huh? You're one of the four kids," he said. "Lucky Alexandrite seems to be with you, huh? After Tsezugera, you're next. Or, would you like to give me your card now?"

"You come here now! I'll take you on! I also have a copy of The Sca-!"

Before he could finish his sentence, Hitomi put her hand over his mouth and Biscuit started to scream to cover Gon's voice. Killua turned to Tsezugera, panicking.

"Can't you talk somewhere else?!" he asked.

"Don't worry," he assured. "We've broken contact."

The girls sighed in relief after saying that, stopping their attempts to cover Gon's message. Hitomi glared at Gon, and he rubbed the back of his head.

"Genthru is ignorant of your strength. As a proof of it, he thinks that we hold the original Scarlet Eyes. Since you have the Paladin's Necklace, you should know while trading, the necklace can identify cards made using Fake but it will also destroy cards made from Clone or Transform. That's why they are after the original. Ours, that's it," Tsezugera said. "Hence, let me suggest something new. We will scrap the idea of joining forces. Listen to what I have to say about a new deal."

"Deal?" Gon asked.

"Three weeks... we'll take that time to evade Genthru. And use that time to recover."

Hitomi opened her eyes before looking at Killua's hands, before frowning. Gon maybe would heal on time... but she wasn't that sure about Killua. Boy, she wasn't sure if he would ever recover. The bruises in his hands were disgusting and looked painful.

"Is that even possible?" Killua asked.

"If we attack first, it's possible but dangerous. If we are successful, can you hand over Number 75, Lucky Alexandrite?"

The four kids just looked at each other.

"Three weeks aren't enough for Killua's hands to fully recover. It's also almost impossible to fight evenly with Genthru team, but..."

"So, you want us to use that time to come up with something?" Hitomi asked.

"Exactly. With a good plan, you might be able to defeat Genthru. So prepare to lure Genthru's team to a place that's to your advantage. We can't avoid fighting them any longer and you are the only ones that have a chance against them."

"We are the only ones to have a chance against them? Is that true?" she joked. "Wow, last time I checked we were that weak that we _wouldn't_ stand a chance in this game."

Tsezugera chucked a little.

"Seems like times had changed," his face became serious again. "Good. Starting from today, we'll keep Genthru's team occupied for three weeks."

"Count me in," Goreinu said, pointing at himself. "This certainly seems like the best way."

"Do your best," one of Tsezugera's friends said. "Just leave them to us."

Gon just nodded.

"However, Gon... What you did earlier was selfish and foolish," Tsezugera scolded Gon, who flinched. "If they were provoked and came here immediately, what would happen to Killua and Hitomi, who are still injured? Your outburst of anger endangered everyone here."

After realizing that he had done, he glanced at his feet, guilt shining in his chocolate eyes. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"Well, it's fine now."

And after that, they left using a card. The three of them keep watching the sunset, still thinking about the plan, Bomber, and everything else.

 _"Three freaking weeks... Damn, that's way too soon,"_ Hitomi thought.

"What should we do?" Gon asked.

"What should _you_ do?" the girl remarked. "Now because of your little outburst, I'm 100 percent sure that our cute Bomber guy is going after you... I can suppose that the other three will divide among us."

Biscuit placed a finger over her chin, in deep thought.

"Killua, you should focus on recovering. And while you're at it, devise a way to defeat Genthru," she told the boy. "Hitomi, you will continue doing basic training and help me training Gon. Avoiding Little Flower is the first priority."

They all nodded.

"Gon, I'll train you hard!" she shouted, in determination.

* * *

Both girls started attacking Gon at full speed, and he did his best to avoid all of their hits. Biscuit then grabbed his wrist. He quickly used Gyo.

"You're way too slow!" Hitomi shouted, making the boy flinch.

"You shouldn't be waiting to use Gyo until after I grab you, it has to be the instant I touch you," Biscuit completed the thought.

"Osu!"

"Don't 'osu' us!" Hitomi hissed, annoyed.

She then started to hit him again, making her teacher chuckle a little, before doing the same.

Killua, on the other hand, just looked at the situation from the rock in which he was, failing to come up with a master plan to defeat the Bomber.

 _"She is taking it even more seriously than Bisky,"_ Killua smirked. _"She's so into it."_

After awhile, they stopped doing it because Biscuit decided to make Gon do Emission exercises, and she told Hitomi to do some Manipulation ones. That's why she had a lot of spoons next to where she was sitting, which were brought by Biscuit.

She took one and eyed it. She used her Nen and, slowly, it started to bend a little bit.

"Didn't I told you?" Hitomi joked, looking at Killua, "I'm psychic!"

"And here I thought you were the one taking it more seriously among us..." he shook his head.

"What can I say? Staying serious for a long time isn't one of my qualities," she gave him a sheepishly smile. It, however, disappeared and replaced itself with a frown at the sight of Killua's wrapped hands. "By the way, how are your hands?"

He looked down at them, as Biscuit made her way towards the kids. "Even moving them a millimeter hurts," he admitted. "They haven't recovered one bit."

Hitomi eyed them for a bit, it was exactly as she had thought. She released a long sigh, before continuing with her training.

"How is the plan coming along?" Biscuit asked him. The boy just shook his head, feeling a little upset. "Well, I guess coming up with one immediately is impossible."

Hitomi smirked as she managed to bend completely a spoon. She then grabbed another and began to do the same.

"Say, what is your ability?" Killua asked his teacher. "If possible, tell me so that I can come up with a plan more easily."

The other girl's concentration got lost as soon as a young woman was materialized next to Biscuit. Killua stared at her as well.

"Allow me to introduce my ability. She's the magical beautician, Cookie-chan," Biscuit said. "Her various massages are the caress of happiness. They burn off excess fat, and bring both mind and body into paradise. Her aura transforms into a special lotion, bringing youth and beauty to the skin!"

Hitomi decided that was better not to listen to her anymore, so she tried to focus in her training instead. The words, however, kept going inside Killua's ears and getting out, giving him a feeling of confusion. After a while, he shook his head.

"Is that all?" he asked.

"Of course not!" Biscuit declared, excited. "She does body massage, meditation massage and roll massage! And there's plenty more~!

The younger girl just released a long sigh. It was getting every time harder to focus in her task.

"Dumbass, that's completely useless!" Killua snapped.

"What are you talking about?!" Biscuit yelled, pissed off. "There's no other ability more useful!"

Hitomi gritted her teeth, trying to control herself. Sure, she was well aware that she was really an annoying person herself… but that was too much for her to take.

 _"So loud..."_ she thought.

The spoon started to bend dangerously.

"You can't put that ability to use!" Killua shouted.

"To a woman, it's the best ability!"

"You idiot!"

"What did you say?!"

"Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!"

"I'll pulverize you!"

"SHUT UP YOU TWO FOR GOODNESS SAKE OR I'LL BE THE ONE PULVERIZING YOU!" Hitomi finally snapped.

And the spoon broke with a loud sound.

* * *

Gon was still training because if he didn't do so, Killua's plan would never work. Meanwhile, the other three were sitting behind him, looking at Hitomi's binder.

"It's been ten days since Tsezugera and the others left the game," Killua said.

"I wonder how they're doing," Biscuit commented. "Only five days left before the three weeks are up."

"As long as they are outside Greed Island, they will be just fine," Hitomi commented. "The problem would come if they were inside it like... well, us. We won't have that five days, today Genthru's team is going to come for us, I'm sure."

"Yeah... If Tsezugera's team don't come back into the game, all their card data is going to disappear," Killua said. "Well, I guess we have no choice but to wait for a message from Goreinu."

Right then, Gon stopped his watch and looked at it. Grinning widely, he waved it in front of the other three.

"Hey, I can do it perfectly now!" he said. "Now I can focus on my Emission type training, can't I?"

"Didn't you listen to us?" Hitomi instantly replied. "We said one minute _sharp!"_

"Even if you say you can do it perfectly, there's still an error of 0.1 seconds, right?" Killua explained.

"You can't even have a 0.1 second error!" Biscuit instructed. "It would be ideal for the error to be less than 0.01 seconds! Now, start!"

Gon pouted, clicking the button of the timer once again. At the same moment, the voice in Hitomi's binder started to say that a player had used Contact in her.

"It's me, Goreinu," he said. "Sorry for keep you waiting."

"So, how was it?" Hitomi asked.

"You know that it's been almost 240 hours since Tsezugera and the others left the game, right?" Goreinu said. "I'll tell you this beforehand, Tsezugera and his group won't come back."

"Why?" Killua asked.

"Genthru and his gang are having a stakeout in front of the starting point. Tsezugera doesn't know that, but we already decided on an arrangement beforehand," he explained. "After leaving the game, they won't come back in until I send a messenger to the port."

"I see, but their card data will disappear, won't it?" Biscuit said.

"I've kept all their important cards."

"Then they'll notice that they have allies elsewhere!" Killua shouted. "I'm sure Genthru is checking the card numbers with Side Vision. It'll be bad if they notice those three didn't have the important cards!"

"Don't worry."

Goreinu then kept silent for a while, saying that he noticed something. The other kids looked at each other, but didn't say anything.

"They left," he finally said. "Judging from the direction they're headed, they probably went to Masadora to collect more Accompany. It's finally the do-or-die situation."

"Anyway, what did you mean before?" Hitomi asked. "You said 'don't worry' before and I honestly don't have a clue with what you meant."

"Oh, that. They are fake," he said. "We've exchanged about 30 out 96 that they've collected with fakes. So, I'm the one who actually has the 96 cards. Of course, I have the Exchange Ticket and Blue Planet waiting for someone to use Gain on them."

Hitomi just blinked in confusion.

"It's a once in a lifetime gamble for the cautious Tsezugera. That's why I want to make it a success. I'm sorry for not being able to help you fight Genthru's team."

"We understand," Killua nodded. "So when do you want the promised card?"

"After defeating Genthru's team is fine," he replied. "Do your best."

The three kids looked at each other and nodded in determination.

"Did you find a way to defeat them?" Goreinu asked.

"It's all set," Killua replied. "Thanks to you, guys."

"I see... I hope you win. Please win for the sake of those who were killed by them."

"Don't worry," Hitomi assured. "There's no way we lose."

"Well, bye."

And like that, the call ended. Biscuit then turned around to face Gon.

"You better not have stopped practice to listen to that conversation," she said, sternly. "Let's see your stopwatch."

He looked at it and he grinned widely because he had managed the one minute sharp time. The others smirked as well. That was just perfect.

* * *

Hitomi realized it right when she saw the light beam in the sky, going towards them. It was finally the time.

"They are coming!" Biscuit said.

"So they've finally started it," Killua added.

"And looks like we have to start with _it_ as well," Hitomi nodded.

"Bring it on!" Gon's eyes shone in determination.

The light landed, and Genthru's group appeared. Trying to look surprised, the four kids took a step back.

"What do you want?" Killua asked, icily.

"Now, don't get so defensive," Genthru said. "We came to make a deal."

"Deal?" Hitomi said. "Thanks for going to all the trouble to meet us, but we don't intend to make one."

"Don't say that. It's not a bad deal," he smiled. "Tsezugera agreed to it as well. It's a good idea."

The other four just stayed there, in silence. It was clear that he was lying to them.

"What kind of deal?" the white haired boy asked, cautiously.

"So you're interested in listening to it," he said, taking a couple of steps forward. "Then, I'm coming your direction for a bit-"

"No!" Gon yelled suddenly, making Genthru stop in his tracks. "We'll listen to this 'deal' of yours in the positions we are in."

Biscuit inner self smirked. They were playing the role of the innocent, weak little kids really well. If things continued going that smoothly, they could think that they would reach the agreed place unintentionally after running away.

"Oh, well. The deal is simple," Genthru explained. "Let's split the reward. We'll clear the game on behalf of everyone. We'll all leave the game, receive the reward from Battera and split it. Simple, isn't it?"

"Oh, yeah, we can believe you know," Hitomi said sarcastically, rolling her eyes and backing off a little more. "Not that you've threatened us in the past or anything. Not in the slightest."

"We've turned over a new leaf," he said. "As proof, Tsezugera is already out of the game. Check it."

"We've already done that," Killua said. "But that doesn't prove that an agreement has been made between you and them."

"Well, yeah... Then what do you want to do?" he pressed his glasses further in his nose. "Die?"

The air suddenly became thicker and Hitomi's group tensed slightly. A murderous, scary aura started to be emitted around Genthru's figure.

"Quit blabbering and hand over the cards, or..." he warned. "I'll kill you."

"He's finally showed his true form!" Killua exclaimed, looking at Gon, who held a card in his hand.

"Accompany on!" he called. "To Soufrabi!"

And like that, their tag game started. When they landed at the place, they found themselves in front of the Bomber again and used another Accompany card. The event happened again, so they used their last copy of said spell.

One more time, they found themselves facing the enemy group.

"Return on!" they all called, holding the cards. "To Masadora!"

Right when they arrived at the place, they made their way to the depths of the forest and hide there until Genthru's team arrived. When they left, the foursome started to run again.

After a lot of time, Bomber used Accompany and the four of them stood in front of the kids, who stopped in their tracks.

"Damn it!" Hitomi shouted.

Genthru just smirked.

"What's wrong? The game is over?" he asked. "How about you give up and hand over the cards?"

"No way!" Gon shouted. "I'll never give them to the likes of you!"

Hitomi and Killua looked at him. They were aware that he wasn't acting at all as they were. The boy was pissed off for real... and that wasn't a good thing...

"I'd rather fight than give them to you!" he yelled.

"Hey, Gon!" his friend called.

However, the black-haired boy didn't spoke. Killua fell silent for a while, before starting to run away, being chased by the blonde man.

 _"So, it's time?"_ Hitomi inner self smirked, before looking at the guy looking at her with cold, green eyes. He had long brown hair and a moon tattooed in his forehead. _"Looks like that this is my opponent..."_

Killua tried to kick his opponent, but he blocked his attack. He leaped and stood in the side of a huge tree. He looked at the girls.

"Bisky, Hitomi, make a run for it!" he yelled.

"But..." Biscuit mumbled, acting as a good girl as always. "But..."

"I'm not leaving you!" Hitomi faked her anger. "No way in hell!"

"Just run!" he shouted again.

Hitomi growled slightly, still acting of course, before glancing at her enemy. He tried to kick her, but she just leaped, impulsed herself with his leg, and jumped. She then started to run.

"Well then... Book," she called her binder a while before, surprising her enemy. She then took a card and it transformed back to what it was supposed to be, Accompany. "Accompany on! To Antokiba!"

Once there she looked at him with a huge smirk written in all her face. The guy, on the other hand, looked around in confusion.

"Why did you get me here if you wanted to fight me one on one?" he then asked.

"Obviously, because I don't want you to cry over your teammates for help," she replied.

He just stared at her, cluelessly. What the hell was she talking about?

"You mean that I'll be that desperate to ask for help?" he asked.

"Exactly! In fact, you'll maybe even cry for your mommy. Let's hope she has Nen to come here," she grinned. "Well then, why don't we start with a tag game?"

"Are you kidding?"

"Well, not really. Anyway, you're 'it'!

And then, she started to run.

* * *

After an hour or so, the man got tired. Hitomi, however, just kept jumping from tree from tree, avoiding him to catch her. His heart was beating that fast and strong that it was almost up in his throat. The calm breathing he used to have was somehow replaced to a rather elaborated one.

"What's wrong?" she grinned, hanging on a branch by her legs. "You move slower than my grandma, you know?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" he threw a punch right to her. The girl avoided it and jumped to another tree.

"And you know that's funny? She's dead already," she taunted, as her grin turned into a daring smirk. "You know you need to get fit when even a deceased person is faster than you."

"Don't kid with me, brat!"

This time, he got quicker, maybe out of rage. She jumped in a higher branch with an intense look and a huge smirk.

 _"I think it's enough for now,_ " she thought.

The man disappeared and soon, he was holding her. He grabbed her by the collar of her shirt.

"You're 'it' now, I think-"

But then looked at her red eyes, and couldn't take the gaze out of it. A couple of minutes later, the aura in Hitomi's body increased as she grinned wickedly.

"So, what to do?" she asked. "It's getting cold, you know?"

A wave of cold air hit his back and made him shiver softly. As time went by, he began losing the feeling in his fingers.

She took advantage of it, of course. Hitomi broke off his grasp and kicked him across the face, before pushing his back and stepping hard on it.

"And you are 'loser' now, I think," she grinned, teasingly. "Well then, why don't we have a rematch-?"

She looked at him and then pouted.

"He blacked out," she whined. "Damn, I thought it would be fun."

She shook her head, calling her binder and taking off a Contact card. She then used it on Killua, but she just didn't have the chance to say anything, because he beated her on doing so.

"YOU'RE LATE!" he shouted, making Hitomi flinch at the loud sound. "What took you that long?!"

"How rude! I could've just died here and you greet me like _that?_ " she grinned, joking a little. "Why don't you try with something like 'Oh, nice to hear about you Hitomi! I was worried about you, are you okay?' It wouldn't hurt anyone, you know?"

There was a long silence.

"Hitomi," he released a long sigh. "Are you well aware that guy was probably the weakest out the four, aren't you?"

A vein popped up in her head. "I know," she mumbled, pissed off. "I just wanted to have fun."

"And you had any fun?"

"Well, no," she replied, and then heard the boy laughing. "It's not funny, Killua!"

"Just come here, Hitomi!" Biscuit's voice could be heard.

She did as she was told using Accompany, and dragging the guy with his face on the ground while walking towards them. Once there, she waved at them and they shouted angrily at her once again. One more time, she ignored them.

Long, _long_ time after that Killua's book popped up out of nothing, since someone had used Contact on him. Gon's raspy voice greeted them:

"Killua, Hitomi, Bisky..." he managed to say.

"Gon! You're even later than Hitomi!" Killua exclaimed. "Are you okay?"

"You see? Even Gon gets treated better than me!" Hitomi complained.

"That's because he fought the tough guy, idiot," Killua remarked.

"Because he was loose-tongued, what's the difference?"

Biscuit facepalmed. "This is _not_ the time for this, guys!" she said, before turning to the book. "Anyway, Gon, how did it go?"

Gon weakly laughed at the other end.

"Complete success," he said. "I just lost my whole hand."

"I definitely didn't understand that hoarse voice of yours..." Hitomi raised an eyebrow. "You say that _actually_ the only thing damaged is your non-existent hand?"

"His throat seems damaged," Biscuit agreed. "Looks like it turned out like I thought."

They meet up, and Hitomi resisted her urge to puke when she saw Gon's arm, but shook it off afterwards. They tied the four Bomb Devils and waited for them to wake up.

"Good morning!" Hitomi chirped with a smirk, once Genthru came to.

Bomber gave her a long look, and then noticed that he was in front of the four kids. Aside from the girl who greeted him, they all were dead serious.

And next to them, there were his teammates, waking up as well. Like him, they weren't in a top condition either.

"Let's get down to business," Killua said, coldly. "Take your binders out."

"You'll return the cards you obtained from betraying your comrades," Biscuit added.

He gave Bara - the guy who fighted Biscuit - a long look. He then directed his face to the kids.

"On one condition," he said. "Use Archangel's Breath to heal Bara. I have clones."

"Don't worry," Killua replied. "We intended to do that from the start."

"We prepared eight clones beforehand," Hitomi replied. "Because we're that crazy to heal the guys who wanted to kill us... We're good kids after all."

Genthru was stunned at the revelation. Before staring at them, he agreed and released his book. After collecting the cards, they used Archangel's Breath on Gon and, in everyone's shock, he was healed completely. Not long later, they used another copy of it to heal Bara.

"You're up next, Killua," Hitomi said, before turning to Genthru. "We are stealing your binder. Not hard feelings."

"Do whatever."

Biscuit then took an Archangel's Breath and tried to use in Genthru.

"The number of Archangel's Breath has been maxed out," a voice in the card said. "The clone will be destroyed."

And it vanished in thin air. Since that wasn't what they accorded to do in their plan, Biscuit blinked in confusion a couple of times and panicked.

"W-Wait! What's going on?!" she yelled. "I just did exactly what I was told! Is it my fault? Is it really my fault?!"

"Whoa! Calm down!" Hitomi tried to calm her down. "It isn't your fault. It's Monkey-Face's one."

"Eh?" she looked at the girl, puzzled.

"Yeah, Goreinu must've increased his claims of Archangel's Breath with Clone or Transform," Killua nodded. "That way, after we use two Archagel's Breath cards, he'll claim two more."

Speaking of the devil, Goreinu called. He then agreed to come over there, after making himself sure that the four were okay. Once he was there, they explained the situation to him.

"I really dislike this, I don't approve it," he said, as expected. "Why should we use Archangel's Breath on them?"

"Because we're not like them?" Hitomi raised an eyebrow, making Goreinu growl softly.

"But these guys have killed dozens of players, or have you forgotten?!" he shouted. "If it's for these guys, I won't trade."

Killua eyed him and leaned closer, slightly. "What about me?" he asked.

"Of course," he replied. "If it's for you, I wouldn't trade. I'd just give it to you."

"Even if I told you that I've killed loads more than these guys?" Goreinu looked at him, shocked at the revelation. "Everyone comes here risking their lives. Compared to them, those I've killed were not even prepared to die. For them, it's like being suddenly killed by a phantom. Doesn't that make me worse than these guys?"

"No, you guys are just different," Goreinu replied, stubbornly. "I like you, but I really hate these guys."

"Wow, that was _really_ logical," Hitomi mumbled, sarcastically.

"Right, it's not," Goreinu said. "It's about emotions. You guys feel the same way, right?"

"But even if we dislike them, we won't consider leaving them like this," Biscuit added. "Punishment is out the question."

"This was something the four of us decided before fighting," Gon told him. "After the fights are over, and after obtaining Archangel's Breath, we'd heal anyone's wounds regardless. This wasn't debated, we settled it naturally."

Hitomi released a long sight. "Looks like we don't have other way," she then looked at Killua, with an apologetic smile, who blinked at her. "Sorry, Killua. Can you bear with it for a while more?"

"No problem," he replied, without second thoughts. "I can heal these hands myself."

"I highly doubt that, but... oh, well," she then turned to Genthru's team. "As you see, we only have one card left."

"Just one more?!" Goreinu exclaimed. "Isn't that the original?!"

He, however, got ignored.

"Use it on Genthru," Killua's enemy said, while Hitomi's one nodded. "I'm not nauseous or dizzy."

"Neither I am," the other said. "I have a headache, nothing more."

In Goreinu's dismay, they used it on Genthru. They then said there were leaving to Masadora, to collect more cards, when the man stopped it.

"Fine, fine! I'll give them to you!" in a rush he summoned his binder and took a card, giving it to Gon. He blinked at it. "Sheesh. When I talk to you, I somehow feel like a kid."

"Are you sure?" the boy asked.

"Yeah," he nodded. "Actually, before coming here to talk, I intended to give it to you. Not just Archangel's Breath, but all of our cards as well. Myself, Tsezugera and his crew... the four of us agreed. We'll all quit the game."

Hitomi was shocked, but shook it off afterwards. She looked at Killua and then used Archangel's Breath to heal him as the others talked.

The boy stared at his hands with a huge smile in his face.

"Amazing!" he shouted. "I've been completely healed!"

Hitomi blinked for a bit but then chuckled at the sight of the happy boy. They both turned to the man who was talking. He then said that, even though Battera gave up on the game, he was going to pay the reward to them all. Also, that he was going to receive five billion jenny for it.

"F-Five billion?!" Biscuit shouted. "Hey, give me some of that!"

"Huh? What are you talking about?" he replied, nonchalantly. "I'm sharing it, of course. It's an equal split. Each of us gets one billion."

"EH?!" that was their only reaction.

"Obviously, I didn't do is single-handedly, right? I got this money... only because I joined you guys."

"Y-You're such a... nice guy!" Biscuit eyes watered, as she held Goreinu's hands in hers. "Your face isn't really my type though..."

Hitomi blinked at him. " _He is giving us four billion jenny like nothing? There are a little amount of people capable of doing something that generous..."_ she thought. _"And I'm not a good example of it..."_

Goreinu turned serious again, and so did the kids.

"Now, you have 99 cards," Goreinu told them. "The only remaining card is 000. Everyone is watching our every step. When 99 cards are collected, what will happen?"

"I think that everyone wants to know," Hitomi nodded. "Let's find that out."

Gon called his book and, slowly, began to place Goreinu's cards on its place. At the 99th, they all looked at each other and nodded.

Hitomi stared at the book, as Gon put the card in there.

"This is an announcement to all players. Just now, a player has collected all 99 designated cards," the woman's voice said. "As a celebration, ten minutes from now, all players in Greed Island are invited to a quiz. There are 100 questions in total, they will be about the designated cards. The player with the most correct answers will win a prize. The Number 000 Card, the Ruler's Blessing, will be given to that player. Everyone, please wait with your binders open."

The kids looked at each other.

"That was pretty smooth," Hitomi commented. "People who stole cards won't be able to answer."

"So we can only answer 70-80% of the question correctly," Biscuit commented.

"This could be hard," Killua agreed. "But the group which obtained most cards on their own is probably Tsezugera's. And they're no longer here. The rest of the players are probably rookies."

They felt someone coming and tensed. The four looked at the huge amount of players who had come there using Accompany.

"Don't worry, we're not here to interfere. Actually, we came to help," one of them said. "If we are the top players of the quiz, we want to sell the card for 2.5 billion. To you, that money would only make up 5% of your final prize."

 _"I see,"_ Hitomi thought. _"These guys are ignorant of Battera."_

"Sure thing," Killua nodded. "That's only if you emerge on top."

They looked around, noticing that the others were waiting for the same thing. "What should we do?" Biscuit asked.

"Huh?" Gon voiced. "We should just solve them individually."

"Yeah," Killua agreed. "How about a penalty for the worse player?"

"Okay!" Hitomi grinned, excitedly. "I'm in!"

Biscuit, on the other hand, just smiled proudly at the sight. " _Sheesh... they really are something. They just ended life-and-death battles. Most likely, they're the only three who truly enjoy this game,"_ she thought. _"Well, hang in there until the end. I'll give this quiz a pass."_

The three of them sat in the ground, with their books open.

"Now then, the quiz questions will be presented."

But despite all her efforts, Gon ended up winning the card.

* * *

Hitomi sighed, as she sat down next to Killua. Gon was inside the castle and Biscuit had gone to who-knows-where, probably shopping or something.

"So, what are you gonna do?" Killua asked out of cold. "You have the Scarlet Eyes, don't you?"

"Oh, that's right," she remembered. "I promised Kurapika that I'd come with him when I find a pair."

Unconsciously, she learned further in the wall. She knew that she had to be happy, after doing what she was supposed to do. But she had grew even more fond of her friends.

And, in the end, she was a little upset.

"So, we're departing after this," Killua mumbled, gazing at the floor.

"... Yeah..."

No one said anything more, and Hitomi then realized that the side-effects of using her eyes for a long time were taking effect. Killua noticed that, and narrowed his eyes.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, just tired," she said. "Because of that Scarlet Eye-thing."

"So you are tired," he sighed, annoyed. "Why did you used it?"

"Because, otherwise, it would be boring," Hitomi grinned. "Ending the fight in a matter of five seconds is not worth of it."

"But it was stupid," he remarked.

"It wasn't!" Hitomi replied, pissed off a little. "Trying to get fun is a good reason! You did the same, when you took the Exam, don't you?"

Killua facepalmed. "You're the most annoying person in the world," he sighed.

"Ah, thanks," she sheepishly smiled. "As you already know, annoying people is one of-!"

"JUST GET SOME SLEEP!" he yelled, irritated.

Hitomi mumbled something under her breath and then her eyelids dropped. Killua gave her a long look, before sighing.

 _"She can be a little annoying..."_ he bitterly smiled. _"But I somehow get used to it. I will be just weird without her around..."_

He then felt something hitting him in the chest and found her head there. A vein popped up when he realized that cliched situation was happening: she had sleep on him.

He blushed furiously.

"Get lost! You're heavy!" he tried to push her, but no avail. "And your hair is tickling me!"

Hitomi didn't react and stayed there. _"Sometimes, I feel inside on some kind of shojo manga..."_ Killua released a long sigh, shaking his head.

Long time before that, Biscuit walked up to them and smirked slightly at the sight, folding her arms in front of her. Hitomi was asleep in Killua's chest. He was too, with an arm thrown over the girl's shoulder.

But the cute scene ended sooner than she expected it to...

"E-EH?!" Hitomi shouted, as soon as she woke up. "PERVERT!"

Killua came to himself as well and got further away from her. "Pervert?!" a tick mark appeared in his head. _"You_ slept on me!"

"But you were hugging me!" she shouted back.

"Like hell I was!" he yelled. "Man! I even tried to bear your annoying hair tickling me and I am the pervert?!"

Hitomi stood in silence for a while, and Biscuit facepalmed.

"You touched my _hair?_ OH MY GOD!" she shouted, looking at her hair. "It's infected now, damn it! Washing it won't help... I need scissors... But where the hell do I get them?!"

Killua raised an eyebrow, as Biscuit blinked at her, when she called her book.

"What the hell are you doing?" Biscuit asked managed to ask.

"I'll call Binolt, he must have some pair with him," they looked at her as she was nuts... she probably was. "Contact-!"

"H-Hey!" Killua leaned closer. "Stop it!"

But then he got her foot in his face, pushing him away from her. His irritation raised a lot more than before.

"Get away from _me,"_ Hitomi said, coldly.

"Don't worry, I will!" he shouted, annoyed.

"You two, cut it!" Biscuit tried to separate them.

"Uh..." a voice said behind them. "Guys?"

They turned around, just to see Gon coming towards them with a small box in his hands. Hitomi and Killua exchanged a glance, before looking away in annoyment to each other.

* * *

Right after the party thrown for them, the four sat in front of the box that Gon brought and his binder. He told them that they needed to choose four cards from the binder to take to the real world.

"So, which four will you choose?" Biscuit asked.

"How about everyone choosing one each?" Killua proposed.

"Then, I choose Blue Planet," she instantly took the card, and rubbed it with her cheek. "Giving up Young Medicine is hard, but I just have to have this! I can't wait to see the real thing~!"

They looked at Hitomi who, as expected, choosed the Scarlet Eyes. She gave it a long look and grinned proudly to herself.

"Then, what will you choose, Killua?" she asked the boy.

"Humm..." he placed his arms behind his head, in thought. "I'm still thinking," he then turned to Gon. "Have you decided?"

"Yes, I have," he nodded. "This one."

They all looked at his election. Biscuit didn't seem to understand, but the other two got it almost immediately.

"That makes sense..." Killua said.

"Wow! From a plan coming from you... it's pretty good," Hitomi teased.

"What do you mean with that?" he mumbled, annoyed.

Biscuit just blinked.

"But that card alone won't do," the Zoldyck boy pointed to another one. "You'll need this one too."

"I wonder if that will work," Gon commented.

"But there's also no other option," Hitomi crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"Hey, what?" Biscuit was feeling a little out the conversation. "What is it? What's going on?"

"Let's see... Bisky, you're okay with Blue Planet, right?" Killua said, in a rude manner.

Biscuit was pissed, Hitomi could say. She froze in her spot.

"Include me in this conversation!"

 ** _SMACK!_**

And the pain wasn't late to come at all.

* * *

When it was all over, Gon came out the game. He walked towards his three friends, with a huge smile in his features.

"Hey, hurry, hurry! Get the binder out!" Biscuit bugged him, making him summon his book... or the box more likely. She hurried and opened it, before taking the card. "Gain!" a blue round gem appeared in her hand, and her eyes sparkled at the sight of it. "This... this is it! My dream, Blue Planet! What should I call you? Pla-chan? Blue-chan? Planet-chan will great!"

 _"Naming a jewel?"_ Hitomi raised an eyebrow, before shrugging.

She then took her card and used 'Gain'. The small vial fell in her hands and she hold it, clenching it slightly.

"So, since you have the eyes, does that mean...?" Gon trailed off.

Hitomi thought of it for a little, before smiling. "Well, I'm sorry but you'll have to endure me sticking with you guys," she smirked.

They all looked at her, in surprise.

"I hadn't find Kurapika yet, and I'm not going to search for him all over the world, you know. He is old enough to take care of himself," Hitomi grinned. "I also know that I'll bump into him someday, and that will be the day we will depart for real."

The two boys grinned when they heard that. "That's good!" Gon shouted, eagerly.

"Well then, how about you, boys?" Biscuit asked them, after a while.

"We thought about it for a while, but we stuck with Gon's initial choice," Killua nodded at him. "Let's do this."

Gon then used 'Gain' on the Paladin's Necklace and placed it around his neck. He then took the other one - Sword of Truth - and it reverted back to what it used to be, Accompany.

"I can't believe you guys did that for choosing a non-designated card," Biscuit commented.

"Yeah, but if I was the first person in the game, I wouldn't have done it," Gon told her. "You know, the first person whom I met inside the game was Hitomi. But when I checked the binder there was some there whom I'd met before her. The name is Nigg."

"Nigg?" she repeated, in confusion.

"Yes. Nigg is spelled as N-I-G-G, right?" the boy grinned. "Ging is spelled as G-I-N-G."

"So Nigg is an anagram of his name?" Biscuit understood.

"Most likely, I was there with Ging as a baby," he added.

"Maybe he wanted to say something like 'If you want to meet me, get strong enough to clear the game no matter what'," Hitomi shook her head. "You have a tough daddy, don't you, Gon?"

Gon just nodded, with a determined smile.

"When you meet Ging, what's the first thing you'll do?" Biscuit asked him.

"Of course, I'll introduce Killua and Hitomi as my best friends," he replied, happy.

They both looked at them, a little shocked. After blinking twice, the girl smiled warmly at him. Killua, on the other hand, just blushed a little.

"S-Stop that," he scolded lightly, in a tsundere-like way. "It's embarrassing."

The three then looked at their teacher, whose eyes were watering, touched at the strong friendship bond they held.

"I hate getting old, my tear glands get so weak!" she cried. "Initially, I got close just to destroy you friendship!"

"Really?!" the kids exclaimed.

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched. She knew she hadn't come there just to help then at that time...

"Bisky, why don't you join us?" Gon suggested.

"No, I'll pass," she waved her hand around. "I'm not interested in guys with children."

Biscuit gave the kids a long look and smiled. _"If I stay with them any longer, I'll really feel like a parent,"_ she thought.

"I see," Gon said. "Then, take care."

"Yeah, you too," her eyes softened, and her smile widened. "You three are the best. I love you."

They looked at her for a while before grinning and bowing slightly.

"Thank you very much!" they shouted.

She bowed back and nodded. Gon then took the card and smiled at his friends before holding it high in the air.

"Accompany on!" he shouted. "Nigg!"

A huge white light wrapped them and they flew away. Biscuit just waved after them, holding back her tears and wishing to see them again.

The three crossed the sky and passed next to a house, where there was a young man studying the human anatomy. He didn't notice them, though. The only thing he felt was his head overheating and his brain exploding.

Right after that, Leorio's face hit the table with a thud.

In the other side of the world, a young blond boy stepped back, panting and sweating a lot. His eyes then opened when he saw the beam of light crossing the sky, like a shooting star in daylight.

"Giving up, Kurapika?"

He glanced at the man in suit and his face turned serious again. Even though we was awfully injured and worn off, he forced himself to stand.

Kurapika was determinied. He needed to be stronger.

"Excuse me, Master," he said, in determination. "I'll continue."

And the man smirked in satisfaction as the boy started to run towards him once again.

On the other hand, the three kids arrived at an island. Beautiful flower petals greeted them as they flew all over the place in where they were.

And, behind a huge tree, there was a man. Gon took a couple of steps closer to him, as he looked at them at with the corner of his eye.

The boy just froze.

* * *

End of the chapter! Sorry for taking so long!

Well, sorry because of the lame fight (and little reference from Teen Wolf in a little part, my bad). Leaving that apart, I'll tell you that next chapter I'll start with the Chimera Ant Arc and I'll do my best on it.

 **fantasy.92** **:** No, I don't believe you... XD Just kidding. Thanks a lot for reviewing and I hope you enjoyed this chapter:)

 **JokeLover123** **:** Thanks a lot! I wish you had fun reading this update :)

 **Kri:** Thankies! Let's hope you enjoyed this chapter.

 **SoulXHunter:** Thank you for leaving a review! I just hope you liked this chapter :)

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for passing by there! Hope you had fun :D

See you all later!


	28. The Hunter x Bug Problem x NGL

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 28: The Hunter x Bug Problem x Arriving at NGL**

"Hey, Gon," Hitomi asked, a little unsure of what to do. "Is that guy... your father?"

The boy stared at his so-called father. Gon took a couple of steps closer to him, as he looked at them with the corner of his eye.

But the man stood up and threw the three to the ground. He summoned... _something._ It had a clown-face and a big mouth. That's all Hitomi could say about it.

"I got a slot machine in my mouth!" it talked. "It goes from 1 to 9, each number summons a different weapon. This is my Crazy Slots! Don't forget the name!"

Hitomi sweatdropped. _"That was pretty... uh... informative,"_ she blinked. _"Damn, I could've never thought that it existed a creepier clown than Hisoka."_

In its mouth, the numbers started to roll, until it appeared a big '4'. The clown then transformed into a huge, _huge_ gun.

"Damn, bad roll," he then pointed to the kids.

Hitomi jumped to avoid the hit, while Killua managed to push Gon out the way. The girl sighed in relief, before noticing something in the floor. There was a corpse of a little ant, severed in two parts.

"Are you injured?" the man asked them.

He walked towards them, and the kids just stared. He then took off his cape, showing them his long hair and unfamiliar face. Gon gave him a long, dissapointed look.

"He isn't Ging," he mumbled.

Killua and Hitomi's head snapped at him, before understanding what he had said. The girl then turned to the ant and narrowed her eyes a little.

 _"Wait... I swear I read about it somewhere..."_ she thought. _"Isn't it...?"_

"Hey, what was that about?!" Killua demanded angrily. "First you push us down, then you fire at us! Enough fooling around!"

"Fooling around? I was being dead serious," he replied. "If I hadn't opened fire, you would have been attacked."

"By what?! The ant you shot?!"

He then raised his feet, like he was going to step in the insect. Hitomi looked at the ant and froze when she realized that it was slightly twitching.

"You idiot!" she yelled. "That's-!"

The insect, however, was faster so it jumped and bit Killua's knee. He yelped, trying frantically to get that thing out of him, but failed. The man reacted quickly and, as well as he could, got the ant out of him. He then took his weapon and shoot it right on the head.

"What the hell you think you were doing?!" Hitomi scolded her friend. "That's not just an ant. It's a Chimera Ant."

The boys looked at her, cluelessly.

"She is right," the man agreed. "An aggressive, carnivorous insect, currently under class-1 quarantine. From time to time, they even attack humans. You were standing right in front of their nest. If I hadn't fired, a Chimera Ant army would have consumed you by now."

They just stared at him, as he said that they had to go. "Man, forced to take another life..." he mumbled.

"Ah!" Gon exclaimed. "You are the one who saved me back then?" the man looked at him in confusion. "On Whale Island, after I stumbled into the territory of a foxbear with its cub. That time too, you had to kill, in order to protect me."

He thought about it for a little bit. After remembering it, he smirked.

"Oh, yeah, I remember now. I never expected to run into you again here," he said. "You've grown, Gon."

"How do you know my name?"

"I heard it from your dad, Ging-san."

"Eh?" Hitomi said. "You mean that you know him, old man?"

"Old..." he mumbled, before shaking it off. "Yeah, my name is Kite. Ging-san was my master."

* * *

"Oh, so you're also Pro Hunters?" Kite asked them.

"Yep," Gon nodded. "Are you one too, Kite-san?"

"Call me Kite, it's awkward being addressed formally by my master's son," he replied. "I am one. Ging-san was one who made me a top-class Hunter. If I hadn't met Ging-san, I'd have died long ago, in the alley of a slum."

Hitomi found herself actually enjoying Kite's story. He told them how he meet Ging, in the alley where he lived. The story went on, from that until he met Gon on Whale Island and that he learned the boy was his master's son when he found him.

"Somehow, I have the feeling that Ging wanted you to meet Kite," Hitomi told Gon.

"Yeah, so I think," Kite agreed.

"Are you two saying he set all this up?" Killua asked them.

"They might be right," Gon commented, looking at the fire. "Razor was waiting for me. Also were Dwun and List."

"Razor? Dwun?"

"Yeah, in a game called Greed Island," Killua's explained briefly. "It's a long story."

"In the game, a guy called Razor was waiting for me, at Ging's request. He, along Dwun and List were among Ging's ten friends who helped him create Greed Island. I also realized something else, if Ging planned for me go to Greed Island and meet his friends, meeting Bisky and the others may have been another part of his plan."

Hitomi hummed for a bit. "That reminds me," she then turned to Kite. "Have you ever been on a game called Greed Island under the name of Nigg, by any chance?"

"I don't recall the name," he said, in confusion. "Wait... I do remember Ging-san taking me inside a game. Greed Island... Yeah, I believe that was its title."

Gon brought his hands on his head and messed up his hair in frustration.

"And there he tricks you again," Hitomi shook her head.

"You were so sure you'd meet him, huh?" Killua commented.

Kite blinked and Hitomi sighed. She then proceed to tell him briefly all about the game, for him to finally understand what they were talking about.

"So the game Greed Island was created to train you guys," Kite commented.

"Only Gon, really," Killua said.

"Yeah," Hitomi nodded. "We just tagged along for the ride."

"That may been part of Ging's plan too," Gon added. "After all, even Pairo's Scarlet Eyes were there, weren't they?"

"Wait, Scarlet Eyes?" Kite said, surprised. "With that you mean the Scarlet Eyes from the dead Kuruta Clan?"

"Yeah, yeah..." Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Long story short, my brother got his butt saved because he was travelling around. I survived by hiding in a wardrobe. At the end, we're both alive. End of the story."

"I see..."

And the talk continued for a long time more.

* * *

"Anyway, you said the thing that attacked me was a Chimera Ant?" Killua asked after a while.

"Yes, a Chimera Ant. Under a class-1 quarantine. Normally, no one would be allowed near such a dangerous insect," he explained.

"Did you discover them?" Gon asked.

"No, I specialize in larger creatures. But currently, I'm investigating these insects. Something has been bothering me..." he trailed off.

Hitomi glanced at the dead ant's body and then to Killua's wound. She winced at the sight of it and looked away. It was too big for a little ant.

At the time, Killua would had been unable get it off if not where for Kite's help. And yet, it was only one. What would have happened if it had been a lot of them?

It gave her chills just thinking about it.

"But it appears that now, I'll have to move to a different location," Kite looked at his phone. "I must make a call, but I'm not getting any reception here."

"A call?" the boy asked.

"I'm working with others. Seven of us are working as a team. I guess I must wait for their arrival," he said. "Once they're here, I'll introduce you. They're amateurs, but they're still skilled Hunters."

Right then, a group of four people arrived. Hitomi looked at Kite, with a raised eyebrow.

"Ah, speak of the devil," Kite chuckled.

They then stood up and walked towards them.

"Kite, who are these kids?" the pink-haired girl, who was chewing a bubblegum asked.

"My friends," he introduced. "They dropped by for a visit on their travels."

"Oh, it's a pleasure to meet you all the way out here," she pointed at herself. "I'm Spinner Clow. Call me Spin! Nice to meet you."

"I'm Gon Freecss," he shook her hand. "Nice to meet you, Spin."

Her gum bubble exploded, as she and the others just kept looked at him with doubts whether he was serious or not.

"Yes, he is Ging-san's son," Kite smiled.

"Really?!" they all shouted.

"And you? Not you, too?" an afro-haired guy pointed at the other two, who shook their heads.

"No, not us. My name is Killua Zoldyck," the boy smiled politely.

The happiness of the guy dispelled right after the answer and they all paled. Just the short, pale pink haired girl managed to spoke.

"Um... Forgive me if I'm wrong, but are you part of the famous family of assassins?" she asked.

"Yeah, but I quit," he replied.

They all released a sigh of relief, before turning to the girl, who raised an eyebrow at their intense gaze on her.

"What about you?" the afro guy asked. "You're the normal one, aren't you?"

"I'd like to know your definition of 'normal'," she sighed. "Well, I'm Hitomi Kuruta."

For the third time, they all stepped back in shock.

"Don't joke like that!" he gave her an awkward smile. "These guys are dead already."

They shut up when she showed them her red eyes for a second, before turning them back to her original violet color. Kite laughed, since no one was that normal after all.

"Additionally, they three are Pro Hunters," he said. "So you should show some respect.".

"Wow!"

* * *

"Oh, you were right, Kite..." Mon took a small jar out of his bag. "This looks just like the claw of a Chimera Ant queen."

"Can I see it?" Killua asked.

Mon handed the small jar over. Killua looked at it carefully as Hitomi and Gon peered over his shoulders. It was way too big.

"This is a Chimera Ant claw?" he commented. "It's as big as a human finger."

"If that's only the claw... I don't think I want to see the real thing," Hitomi said.

"Maybe one mutated and grew really big?" Killua suggested.

"That's possible, though it may also belong to a completely different species," Kite replied. "Regardless, we just don't know right now. That's why we're investigating."

"It all started with the wonkiest little thing-" Spin started.

"His name was Won! He was a Kakin official," Dinner cut her off.

"What's a Kakin?" Gon asked

"Right here. It's this wild land, in the middle of the Azian continent," Mon replied.

They then told them that it came from a leg of a giant insect found a person who couldn't determine the species of it. But they did know that someone found it near the ocean.

"Sorry you won't be able to catch your breath, but we should hurry after them," Kite told his companions.

"Hey, can we come with you?" Gon asked, feeling excited.

"Hmm?" he thought about it for a while. "Sure."

The three kids smiled at each other.

"Glad to have you," Mon commented.

"Having three Pro Hunters with us is reassuring," Spin said.

"And this is Ging-san's son, a survivor of the Kuruta Clan and one of the Zoldyck Family!" Banana exclaimed. "Oh, sorry..."

"It's not big deal," Killua assured, as he gave Mon the vial back.

* * *

Hitomi looked through the window of the truck and frowned. It looked like almost a desert out there, and Kite commented that it had passed months since it last rained.

"So the insect with the large leg could have been a mutation influenced by those conditions," Spin commented.

"But why would it have grown larger?" Banana was confused.

"In order to survive, right? If it's bigger, it have a better chance of securing food," they all looked at Mon.

They all snapped their heads at him for a moment, thinking about that.

"But that would mean it needs more, as well," Banana stated. "Being larger doesn't always aid survival. I believe that this is related to the Chimera Ant's unique nature, not to the environment."

"I agree," Spin nodded. "Because they reproduce in a way not found in any other organism."

"What do you mean?" Gon was confused.

"It's called phagogenesis," Hitomi told him.

"Phagogenesis?" Gon repeated, puzzled.

"What's that?" Killua asked.

"When a Chimera Ant queen eats other organisms, she is able to pass traits on from those organisms to the next generation. She can also eat multiple species to pass on a mix of genes to her offspring," Kite explained in her place. "With each feeding, she lays one to five eggs. The first generation of births has no reproductive capability, so they become worker or soldier ants. They work in service to the queen and her eventual successors. The successors are the king and queen of the next generation. The queen is thus always looking to consume the genes of a strong organisms, so she can pass them to her offspring. And she may consume any species she particularly likes to extinction."

"To extinction?!" Gon was surprised.

"Yes, her voracious appetite can drive her to consume her own weight many times over, in a single day," Spin told them. "That's why Chimera Ant are under a class-1 quarantine."

"So if she sets eyes on you, you're finished?" Killua narrowed his eyes, in worry. "Judging from the size of that claw, her length is at least two meters. That thing could devour a human in no time."

No one said anything for a while.

"Yes," Kite replied. "You're correct."

* * *

They met with the other two, Podungo and Lin, before going to search in the shore, where it was first found. However, they didn't have any luck, and because of that they decided to return to Yorkshin City for new leads.

And Spin was researching in the computer.

"I don't see anything... I just checked the past six months, and the largest group only numbered ten."

"Say, can we look up missing people individually?" Gon asked.

"Don't be ridiculous. You know how many hundreds of thousands of people go missing worldwide?"

"We should be able to see which areas have the highest concentrations," Killua commented.

She did as she was told, but not avail.

"No good... The data's two years old," she complained.

"Why don't we start checking for sightings?" Hitomi suggested. "If someone saw a two-meter bug, I highly doubt they would just keep walking like nothing happened."

"We tried that, of course. But we couldn't find anything."

Kite thought about it for a while, before getting closer to the young woman.

"Bring up the tidal data from the day the arm was found," he told her.

And, as expected, the results didn't last long to pop up in the screen.

"The arm was discovered here..." Spin looked at the map.

"Now go back ten days. Locate any currents that may have carried the arm to that location in that time."

"What do you mean?"

"It's possible that the arm was severed after the Chimera Ant made a landfall."

She did as she was told and looked at the map. "It could have come from any of the Balsa Islands..." she said.

"Including the Mitene Union."

"The Mitene Union..." Hitomi gasped in surprise. "That's where the NGL Autonomus Region is!"

"Yeah, as well as East Gorteau," Kite nodded. "There's no getting information out of those two countries."

"What's this NGL?" Killua asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"NGL, Neo-Green Life. The people on there live in nature, away of any type of technology," Hitomi explained briefly and shrugged. "But because of that no one knows what happens in there."

"They primarily communicate by letter. Primary means of transportation is by horse. Anyone knowingly bringing technology into the country is subject to execution," Spin told them. "In '87, a three-man TV crew was caught trying to enter the country to get a story. One was executed, and the other two remain in prison. Of its 2.17 million population, 99% belong to the Neo-Green Life Party, with the rest being support volunteers'."

"If the Chimera Ant washed ashore there, how would the NGL citizenry react?" Kite said. "They probably wouldn't do anything. When a deadly epidemic spread throughout the area, they let nature run its course, refusing to admit international doctors. And if they tried to contact the outside, it would be too late by the time word arrived. If that arm belonged to the Chimera Ant queen, she may have already begun to build her nest."

Hitomi flinched at the thought. That weren't good news at all.

"I bought tickets to the Mitene Union," Spin informed.

"But to reach NGL, we have to take an airship to the neighboring Republic of Rokario, and travel by land from there," Banana added.

"It 'ant' gonna be easy to get into a country of such nasty rumors," Dinner laughed at his lame joke.

"Nasty rumors?" Killua repeated.

"What do you mean?" Gon asked.

"The drug? D2? Ring a bell?" they just blinked at Hitomi, and she facepalmed. "Honestly, guys, do you have any idea of _anything?"_

"It a drug that's ingestible and propagating rapidly in urban areas worldwide," Kite explained. "It's derived from the bila tree, native to the Mitene Union. And they claim that over 80% of the world's bila trees are located in NGL."

"So the nasty rumors are saying that the drug is being manufactured in NGL?" Killua understood.

"They're only rumors. No one has been able to publicly prove it."

"After all, the country is locked down tight," Dinner added.

"When people try to get in to investigate, they're executed," Spin told them, placing her arms beside her head.

"Executed..." Gon couldn't believe that.

"Come on! If a country closes their doors at the people and kill the people who go to investigate, it's pretty obvious they are hiding something," Hitomi released a long sigh. "And the bila tree-thing is more than a coincidence."

* * *

The three of them were sitting on a sofa, waiting for the flight time to come. Then, they heard footsteps getting closer, so they turned around to see Kite.

"It may be a bit late to ask, but are you sure you want to come?" he asked.

"Of course!" Gon nodded

"I'm so going," Hitomi grinned.

"You weren't kidding about the 'late' part," Killua smirked

"We have no idea what the situation is inside NGL. There may very well be a swarm of giant Chimera Ants already, hunting humans down. If that turns out to be the case, my priority will be saving them," he turned at his other friends. "So I may not be able to help you. You must be able to protect yourselves. If you want to come, that's the requirement."

"Okay, got it," Gon nodded again.

"We'll be fine," Killua assured.

"Yeah, we can take care of ourselves," Hitomi added. "We don't need babysitting."

"And if I'm the one who's in danger, you should escape without me."

A huge frown crossed their faces, but they didn't say anything. Not long after that, they boarded the ship. Gon and Hitomi sat on a bench, meanwhile Killua remained standing next to her.

"Remember what Kite said before we left?" Gon asked. "That we should escape without him if he's in danger."

"As if I could forget it," Hitomi grimaced. "That words will end up consuming my head if they continue like this."

"I don't think it was a choice..." Killua added.

"Yeah. That's why we neither of us said anything, but I've been thinking. Is it possible for Kite, who earned Ging's respect, to be in that much danger? You said that Ging had a reason for bringing Kite and me together..." they both nodded. "You're probably right. I don't know the reason, but I can't give up halfway, no matter what's going on. Otherwise, I'll disappoint Ging. Of course, I could never forgive myself, either," Gon's eyes shone in determination. "So I won't run away. That's what I've decided."

Hitomi and Killua gave him a long look, before chuckling.

"Man, you had this totally serious expression, so I was expecting something big," Killua said. "But it's just business as usual."

"Huh? I thought about this a lot. I even ran a bunch of mental simulations..." Gon whined.

"There was no need. Even if you didn't, your conclusion would be the same," Hitomi smiled kindly. "No matter how much you think about it, you're still Gon. That means that if someone said you should abandon them, you'd never do it."

"You make it sound like I wasted my time considering it," he pouted. "Then what about you two?"

"I'm a spontaneous guy, so I'd think about it when the time comes," Killua crossed his arms over his chest.

"You mean you might run away?" Gon asked.

"Depends. I can't say until it actually happens."

"Say for instance-" Gon asked.

"I can't tell you what I'd do in a hypothetical situation," he cut him off. "I don't decide until it's time."

Hitomi chuckled, placing her head over her open hand and thinking hard about it. A bad feeling about that made her wince softly and she frowned.

"And what about you?" Gon asked Hitomi.

"I don't know," she mumbled. "I'm not sure."

The other two eyed her, curiously.

"I mean, no matter the circumstance, I hate running away. And I don't know if I would be able to do so when the time comes. However..." she narrowed her eyes. "What happens if we are in a situation in where the danger that surrounds Kite is greater if we are around? If we are just a burden?"

Their eyes opened at thought of it. Gon looked down and clenched his fists.

"I can't shake off the feeling that we are the ones who will lead Kite to death," she completed the thought.

"We better not overthink things, Hitomi," Killua smiled, placing his arms behind his head. "Everything will be just fine."

"Yeah," she nodded, still not convinced. "I hope so."

* * *

Now the group where in the same truck of a diver, who was smoking, making their way to NGL Autonomous Region, through a dessert.

"NGL, huh? They believe living natural is always better. They may be weird for living there, but you guys are weird for coming to visit, too," the man commented. "No idea what's going on, but I've already driven in about ten similar groups today alone."

"Ten groups?!" Gon exclaimed in surprise.

"Yeah."

"Then it sounds like we're among the last to arrive," Kite looked through the window.

Not long after that, they arrived to the place, the border with NGL. There were two big trees, being used for checkpoint and embassy.

"Stay alert. The ants are a concern, but NGL is more than a nature-loving organization," Kite warned them, and they nodded.

They all made their way to the place. Once there, they were met by a man, who looked down to them like trash.

"What brings you here?" he asked, coldly.

 _"Oh, such a warm welcome..."_ Hitomi thought, annoyed.

"We're on a hunt. A quarantined organism may have invaded this country," Kite explained.

"If you are pro Hunters, then we cannot deny your entry," he smiled. "Follow me."

Once there, Hitomi was hit by shock. She stared and blinked at the place and... well, the computers. Even though there wasn't supposed to be tecnology.

"What the hell?!" she almost shouted.

"You're using computers and machines," Killua agreed.

"This place isn't within NGL's borders," the man said, as a matter of fact. "This area is used for foreign relations and information exchange."

"Are there any facilities similar to this within the country?" Kite asked.

"No, not a single one," Hitomi narrowed her eyes at his answer. "No machines of any kind are allowed inside NGL."

Her hunch told her otherwise, but decided to ignore it in favor to listen to the same man.

"Naturally, visitors are also not allowed to bring any inside," another man said. "Which means that you'll need to remove all metallic, petroleum, glass, or other such good on your person."

Hitomi glanced at her back, thinking about the vial inside it, and sighed. She took off the daggers she had stuffed in her pockets and her bracelet in her wrist and put them there as well.

"D-Does that include my glasses?" Lin stuttered as always.

"Yes. If your clothes, belt, shoes or underwear contain any plastic, chemicals or metal, you must remove them."

Spin's gum bubble exploded when he said that.

"That isn't funny," she said, angry. "You're telling us to strip naked?"

"Don't worry. There is natural clothing for sale upstairs."

Hitomi raised an eyebrow. _"Is he trying to get money or something?"_ she thought.

"Also, if there are any bolts inside your body, dental implants, gold, silver or silicon enhancements that cannot be removed, you will not be allowed to enter."

At the end, only six remained there: Kite, Podungo, Stick, Gon, Hitomi and Killua. The girl looked at her new clothes in annoyment, the only ones she could get there. She was wearing a pair of white pants and a bright pink tank top, similar of the ones that the other two were wearing.

"I look like a stupid Barbie doll walking around," Hitomi huffed.

"You're stupid, but definitely not a Barbie," Killua teased. "Not at all."

She just glared at him, before going to Spin to give her the bag. Hitomi smiled, asking her for taking care of it. The eyes were valious after that.

"The checkpoint is over there," a woman guided them. "There will be a physical exam and interview, as well as metal, x-ray and ultrasound scanning."

"The security is rather strict," Kite muttered.

"Oh, you think so?" Hitomi mumbled, sarcastically.

Hitomi couldn't believe how problematic entering to a country could be. They even made them exams of the brain, which the girl saw with a raised eyebrow.

"I can't believe it!" Killua exclaimed, eyeing Hitomi's brain.

"What do you want?" Hitomi was beginning to feel annoyed.

"It's bigger than I thought!" he pissed the girl off. "I had no idea it would be actually bigger than a peanut."

"Oh, then I can tell you I'm pretty surprised myself," Hitomi teased back, pointed at Killua's one. "I thought it would be hollow, empty. But there's plenty space of flesh there."

After the tests were over, they let them pass to the country. They all stood there for a moment, as the wind hit their faces. There was a desert, like the one they had been before.

"Okay, let's begin the hunt," Kite said.

They then rented horses and Hitomi sat on one of them. She then turned around and her eyebrow twitched at the sight of Killua, who was literally _standing_ at the back of the horse. She blinked a couple of times, before shrugging.

A little after that, they stopped.

"We should follow the coast and check the villages," Gon said, looking at the map. "If we go through all of them and nothing turns up it probably isn't the country."

"That's assuming those guys were telling the truth," Killua added.

"Yeah," Hitomi glanced quickly at the people in the horses, looking at them. Her eyebrow twitched. "But they are annoying the hell out of me... Doesn't they know what privacity is?"

"They claimed they were here in case we encounter unknown tribes and require interpreters or intermediaries," Killua narrowed her eyes. "But they're obviously here to watch us."

"Well, I never expected the people here to be any help," Kite commented. "My gut tells me that it's _here."_

The other three understood immediately and frowned in worry.

And they started to move once again, and Killua stood behind Hitomi once again, making her feel a little uneasy.

"Hey, you know," she started. "You may fall if you stay like this for a bit longer."

"Don't worry," he smirked. "I'll be fine."

"I'm not worried, Snowhead. It's just a warning," she mumbled under her breath, irritated. "Fall if you want, I don't care."

"You don't?" Killua raised an eyebrow.

"I don't," she repeated, in determination.

Killua hummed for a bit, placing his arms behind his head. Hitomi released a long sigh, before moving the horse to a side suddenly because of a rock.

"Whoa!" she heard Killua say, startling her a little.

"Killua!" she turned around, in worry, her heart beating faster.

Behind her was nothing and gasped. She then turned around to see him standing in front of her, between her and the head of the horse.

"Just kidding!" he grinned like a cat. "So, _do_ you worry about me, don't you?"

"Whatever," she shook her head. "Don't do that again."

He chuckled, before jumping and sitting behind her, but backwards. Annoyment took over her as she felt his back resting on hers. She then blushed slightly.

"You do love to annoy me, don't you?" Hitomi muttered, irritated.

"Oh, was that obvious?" he smirked. "But you didn't said like me standing, and you are complaining about me sitting?"

There was a long silence.

"Drop dead," that was her only answer.

Something happened then that stopped their childish quarrel. A small bee holding a piece of paper going towards them caught their attention. It stood in Hitomi's hand and Killua took the letter. There was a map drawn with blood, with some writing:

 _"Help!_

 _Chimera Ant Nest_

 _Rocky Area_

 _Notify the Hunter Association!"_

"Hey, Kite!" Killua called, as they all stopped.

He gave the letter at Kite and he looked at it with a concerned gaze. Hitomi on the other hand, looked at the bee posed in her index finger and frowned. She just wasn't able to shook that feeling.

Something _really_ bad was about to happen. Well, you didn't have to be a genius to jump in the same conclusion.

"It'll be dangerous," Kite turned at the kids, after a while. "But could you accompany me?"

"Of course!" Gon said, determined.

"We're Pros," Killua smirked.

"Don't worry about a thing," Hitomi grinned.

After that, the bee flew away. The three kids looked at it as it got further and further away, meanwhile Kite turned to the young woman.

"Miss interpreter..." Kite said, politely. "Sorry, but we're in a hurry,"

"Yes," she smiled, patting the horse in where she was on. "The horses can move a bit faster."

"Not offenses intended," Hitomi said. "But we are way faster than them."

The woman blinked. The three kids stretched themselves as Kite jumped off the horse. He turned to Podungo and Stick and told them to return to the border and inform the Hunter Association.

"If you can't keep up, I'll leave you behind," he told the three kids.

"Right back at you," Killua said, nonchalantly.

"I was bored from sitting on a horse all the day anyway," Hitomi commented.

"All ready to go!" Gon exclaimed.

Kite smiled at them, and the four got into a running stance, feeling again the wild wind blowing their hair away. Hitomi looked at the clueless interpreter, grinned and waved at her.

"Let's go," Kite instructed.

They then started to run, leaving a puzzled young woman behind. She tilted her head to one side, after realizing that they were already gone.

* * *

Hitomi looked at the big, disgusting pool of blood and grimaced. A feeling of disgust with slight fear was built inside her, creating an awful mix she wasn't sure if she was going to endure longer.

She shook off that feeling and kneeled down next to it. She put her finger on the blood and inspected it.

"It's isn't old," she commented as she stood up. "Whoever this blood is from, wasn't killed long before we arrived here."

Killua found something and picked it up. He then stared at the bullet with narrowed eyes.

"This is a bullet casing," he stated.

"Nothing mechanical is allowed here, right?" Gon asked.

"So the underground rulers of NGL were manufacturing guns in addition to drugs," Kite concluded.

The girl gave the blood mess a long look, narrowing her eyes.

"It's not made by a human... Most likely a Chimera Ant," her eyes shone in worry. "And if ants are already carrying guns around... That means the NGL's underground rulers have been already fed to the Queen."

Kite nodded, frowning.

"NGL and Chimera Ants... The worst combination imaginable. This could create an unprecedented biohazard," he spoke. "It's safe to assume that the Chimera Ants have assumed control of NGL's interior. The question is if we can reach their nest before the Queen gives birth to the King."

* * *

The first city in where the four arrived was already a ghostly one. No people were there, but there was a mess on the floors. Baskets, clothes and shoes, all thrown all over the place.

"Say," Gon called out their attention. "Something smells. Coming from over there."

He pointed at some place and they went over there. They found then themselves in front of a stable, blood over the place. Also, there was a red trail that went all the way until a forest.

But they followed them anyway.

"Hey, this feels like a horror movie," Hitomi said, randomly, while going there. "You know, the bunch of guys that find a path of blood, which they foolishly follows and then gets killed by a creepy ghost... Well, a Chimera Ant in our case..."

Killua was about to reply, but stopped at the sight of it. Impaled with the branches of the trees, there were horses. Hitomi was smart enough to know that they were the horses missing in the stable.

"It's like morning sacrifice," Gon told them. Hitomi and Killua gave him a confused look.

"A ritual practiced by birds called bull-headed shrikes," Kite explained. "They impale their prey on sharp objects, such as branches."

"Hey!" a voice behind them said.

They all looked behind them and tensed. Behind them was a strange creature, that they supposed it was a Chimera Ant. He was some time of combination of human, rabbit and bird.

"Wha-?" Gon shouted in surprise.

"Wh-What's that?" Killua was shocked as well.

"Man!" Hitomi facepalmed. "I think I prefer the ghost over this strange mutation-thing..."

"You!" Killua turned to her, annoyed. "Will you ever get serious?!"

The ant didn't either hear her or care about it. "Trash. Those are mine!" he shouted pointing at the tree, before running towards Kite. He instantly avoided him, but the other three got hit and stepped back.

He was strong.

Kite's aura was released and the ant froze upon feeling it. However, it died down and the man calmly walked past the kids. Hitomi blinked at him, as he leaned in the trunk of the tree.

"Gon, Killua, Hitomi. You three must deal with him yourselves," he spoke. "This is a Chimera Ant soldier. We will encounter many more like him. I won't be able to help you during actual combat. If you can't defeat it, you'll have to leave. You'll just be in the way."

The three of them tensed a bit, before looking at the ant with a determined gaze. They let their Nen out, getting ready for the battle.

"Weren't you listening, Kite?" Gon wiped the sweat out of his face.

"We came here for helping you, not being helped," Hitomi ran a hand through her hair.

"We are also Pros!" Killua rolled up his sleeves.

They then started to slowly walk towards the enemy.

"Don't treat us like kids!" they shouted in unison.

And like that, the battle started. The three tried to attack him physically, in turns, but it was useless. Killua tried, got repealed and stood meters behind. Hitomi tried kicking him, but he grabbed her by her ankle and threw her. She flipped and stood next to Killua. Gon did so as well, but got hit in his back.

 _"Time to test it!"_ Killua thought. He jumped on the air and shot him with some kind of thunder coming from his index finger. "Thunderbolt!"

Hitomi raised an eyebrow. _"Right, my ability doesn't have a name that great either but... Thunderbolt? Seriously?"_ she chuckled. _"Seems like Kurapika isn't the only one with serious copyrights issues because of Pikachu..."_

Gon used the paralysis to stand behind him. He focused Nen on his fist, "First comes Rock..." he chanted. "Rock, Paper... Rock!"

At his hit, the bunny-bird thing went flying. Hitomi jumped on the air, right behind him, and smirked widely.

"Here it goes!" she then clapped her hands and the man got hit. Hitomi was sure, the fall was going to finish him off.

However, before he could touch the floor, another ant really condor-like, caught him before that and flew away. Their eyes opened when they realized what was happening.

"BASTARDS!" the shouting was that loud that it became a harsh wind that almost made the kids lose their balance. "I'm gonna eat you! I will! Remember this!"

The three tensed, looking at him as he flew away. _"Our attacks didn't work,"_ they thought.

"That guy's smart. He let his soldier do the fighting, so he could learn our abilities," Kite told the kids, walking towards them.

They didn't say anything, they just waited for him to tell him to go away.

"Are you coming?" they turned around and stared at Kite with a shocked expression. "There's no need to feel down. Your attacks weren't that bad. You just need experience now. If you wish to become stronger, this is a perfect opportunity. But if you aren't prepared, you won't be able to endure the ordeal. Whether we win or lose, hell lies ahead of us."

The three frowned at it.

"Well," Hitomi smirked. "Let's go straight to hell then."

"We're coming," Gon agreed.

"Yeah," Killua just nodded.

* * *

End of the chapter!

 **JokeLover123** **:** Thanks for reviewing! Let's hope you liked this update :)

 **SoulXHunter:** To be honest, I'm worried myself too. I mean, this arc is... special, to put it in a way, so I'm a little afraid of how it will turn into but I still will give my best. Well, thanks for leave a review and I hope you liked it!

 **Kri:** It will happen some changes in their relationship in this arc, but later on... Just wait XD Anyway, thank you for reviewing and I wish you liked this chapter :)

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for reading! Hope you had fun :D


	29. True Face x Running Away x Sad Requiem

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 29: NGL's True Face x Running Away? x Kite's Sad Requiem**

If you thought that the pool of blood last time was bloody enough, then good thing you didn't see that panorama. Hitomi resisted her urge to puke all over it.

Lots of dead bodies were sprawled all over the floor, all splattered with blood and surrounded by more of it. And the smell was another story. Even Hitomi could smell it from kilometers.

"This is ugly..." Kite commented. "The stench alone would guide us to the corpses."

"Look at this," he waved around two huge guns he had found. "So this is the hidden side of NGL."

"Yeah, looks that way," Hitomi nodded.

But Gon wasn't paying attention at all. He noticed something else.

"Killua... Hitomi... Kite..." he called.

He pointed at something away from the cliff in where they were on, there was another cliff with peculiar openings that caught their eye.

"This is the Chimera Ant nest?" Gon asked.

"No. They don't make their nests in holes. They use mud and feces to build them," Kite explained. "Let's go. You'll understand once we're inside."

Once there, they found themselves making their way to the hallway of a cave. It was pathetically illuminated, by light balls hanging on the walls.

"There's no telling when or from where they will attack" he warned. "Be on your guard."

Hitomi tensed slightly, "Got it," she replied.

"That other Chimera Ant completely concealed his presence," Killua commented, remembering the last ant they fought, and the other two just nodded.

After a long while walking, the four of them came across a room with lots of machines and more blood everywhere. They weren't that surprised, though. It was to be expected.

"This is NGL's hidden side," Kite said.

"A drug factory," Killua nodded his head.

"Wow, I couldn't have ever imagined it," Hitomi said, sarcasm filling her voice.

"This factory produces the ingestible drug D2, which is spreading throughout the mainland," Kite explained. "There are probably nearby bila trees, which produce its main ingredient."

Then Killua noticed something and went over a box. Cautiously, he opened it and the other two peered to the items inside over his shoulders.

"They're making more drugs," he stated, picking up a gun.

"It's the same as the others," Hitomi agreed, looking inside more boxes.

"I assume that only the NGL leaders know the truth of this place," Kite concluded. "The other members joined because they honestly loved nature."

"So this facility is the center of NGL's underground," Killua said. "If it's empty..."

"Means that the ants had already paid a visit there," Hitomi completed the thought. "And that bunch of guys with guns aren't enough for them."

"What about their boss?" Gon asked.

"He either escaped or was eaten," Kite shrugged. "Either way, it's bad news."

"What do you mean?"

"Don't you get it-?" Hitomi was about to explain.

But she was shut up by Kite, who told them to keep silence.

"A few are around," he told them quietly. "They're slowly approaching through the first middle tunnel. There are more in the one left and the other two right."

Hitomi blinked. The man was just incredible.

"How far away can you search?" Killua asked him.

"Everything within a forty-five meter radius," that was just... amazing. The man turned serious once again. "Here they come."

The scene was disgusting. From the tunnel, a huge centaur appeared. He had two humans tied with chains, which he held on his right hand, like they were his dogs.

"Who are you guys?" he asked. "How dare you intrude on my turf?"

"Help..." one of the human pleaded them. "Please help us!"

On the other second, the ant stepped on the human's head. Hitomi felt anger building inside her as he looked at his bloody foot with an amused smile.

"Oops, didn't mean to do that. Oh, well," he chuckled. "I'm getting bored with these guys. Guess I'll get rid of Rover too."

The other was startled for a bit, before turning around. He then started to beg for his life, much like a dog will do to its master.

"When you beg like that, I just want to kill you more," he grinned in a twisted way.

Gon tried to run there, but Kite refrained him to do so. The girl's eyes shifted in scarlet and everything else clouded. Out of instinct, she took a step forward.

A hand wrapping around her wrist snapped her out of her thoughts. She turned angrily to Killua, who was holding her back.

"What do you think you're doing?" she yelled at him.

"Cool your head down, idiot," that was his only reply.

But these words were the ones that brought her back to reality, turning her eyes back to her beautiful violet color. She released a long sigh and managed to calm down.

"There's more than one enemy," Kite told them.

From the tunnels, three different ants came out to fight. The first one was a female mosquito-like. The second was some kind of humanoid centipede and the last was a bat.

"I've got it," the centaur striked his snake-like tongue at them. "You four will be my new dogs."

The three kids just looked at him.

"Chimera Ants have always been aggressive, but it seems consuming malicious humans have made them even more evil," Kite explained.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Gon questioned.

"Phagogenesis," Killua answered.

"If we don't deal with them here, many more will die," Hitomi clenched fists. "We can't fail."

Kite nodded, leaking his Nen out. The other three followed him in doing so shortly after him.

"Capture them!" the ant ordered, and the three ran towards the.

"I'll take the one in the back," the man said. "You three handle the three rushing at us."

"Yes, sir!" Hitomi grinned.

"Right!" Gon said in determination.

"Got it!" Killua nodded.

"Do not hesitate," he instructed. "You must fight to kill."

"Bring it!" they three shouted, before splitting up.

Hitomi kicked the bat-ant and he instantly avoided her attack. Her eyes turned scarlet, deciding to use her technique.

After a long while, the bat came towards her. She avoided the attack by jumping and standing on her hands.

"You look tired," she spoke. "You seem that weak that-!"

She was shut up with a hit. She rolled in the floor and stared at it, for a while, sweat rolled down her forehead that she wipped out with her arm.

 _"It didn't work,"_ she panted. _"But why?"_

Hitomi looked at his eyes, cluelessly. They were so dull... empty. Were always bat eyes that...?

Oh, wait.

"Oh, I'm such and idiot! He is a bat," she facepalmed, mumbling angrily with herself. "He's blind."

"Oh, you noticed?" the bat smiled, folding his wings. "Who would say that being blind is a bless?"

She growled, before avoiding another attack. Her gaze didn't got away from his figure though. Her eyebrows furrowed.

 _"Bats, animals who use ultrasound to 'see'..."_ she thought. _"That means that if I... Oh, got it."_

Hitomi then started to clap softly, letting her Nen leak out her body. The bat, on the other hand, froze. He swore that he was hearing clapping almost everywhere.

 _"Why...?"_ a drop of sweat ran through his head. _"Why can't I find her?"_

The girl started to walk around, making him feel her steps everywhere. The ant smirked, before letting his characteristic sound ring once again through the room.

"Found her," he smirked. "I knew that no one can get away from my hearing-!"

He launched towards her, but he felt something. A sharp pain ran through his neck and his head rolled in the floor.

Hitomi gave him a cold glare, walking towards his head.

"Idiot, I can control sound," she smirked evilly. "And that includes ultrasound."

And the head was smashed as soon as she stepped on it. Her cold mode died down as she turned around to her friends with a huge grin.

But she then panicked when she saw what was happening in Gon's side. The centipide's severed head was about to attack him while he was giving it his back.

"Watch out, Gon!" she yelled.

Gon turned around just to see the thing coming towards him. Luckily for them, the ant was shot by Kite right before he could do anything.

"You can't relax after dismembering them," he said. "The head and body can survive an entire day after they've separated. You must crush the head."

"And preferably, you kill him quickly and quietly," the clown-thing said.

"Oh, it's him!" Gon yelled, pointing at it.

"The thing that shot us," Killua added.

"Creepy as always..." Hitomi mumbled.

"I got a slot machine in my mouth! It goes from 1 to 9. Each number summons a different weapon. This is my Crazy Slots! Don't forget the name!"

"Hey," she turned to Kite, pointing at it. "Does he say the same every time you summon it?"

Kite just sighed in response. "Just go away," then, the thing disappeared.

The kids just stared at the older guy.

"It talks by itself?" Killua asked.

"Apparently,"

"Apparently?" Hitomi mumbled, sweatdropping.

"If it uses a slot machine, doesn't that mean you can't choose your weapon?" Gon asked.

"Yes, and I cannot change or get rid of the weapon I receive until I use it," Kite sighed. "It's very aggravating."

They blinked because of that statement as he turned around.

 _"In that case… Why did you come up with this power?"_ they sweatdropped.

After that, the foursome started to walk, still on guard. After all, they didn't know when an ant could jump out of nothing and kill them.

"Your powers are much easier to use than mine," Kite commented.

"Compared to that thing of yours?" Killua raised an eyebrow. "No kidding."

"Gon, you appear to have incorporated Enhancement, Transmutation, and Emitter abilities into your Rock, Paper and Scissors."

"Yep, but my natural affinity lies with Enhancement abilities," Gon grinned.

"And then Hitomi controls sound waves... Are you a Manipulator by any chance?" he looked at the girl.

"Bingo!" she nodded, smirking. "I can use Specialist powers when my eyes are red... but that's a _long_ story that surely will bore you."

"Killua used lightning. Are you a Transmuter?" Kite asked the other boy.

"Yeah, but it's not that strong," Killua commented, as a few sparks popped out from his finger, "and I lose energy fast."

"You'll have the chance to improve," he smiled, before turning serious again. "Let's hurry. The nest is close."

* * *

A bad feeling made the girl stop in her tracks and tense, waiting for an attack. Her eyes narrowed, before taking a glance to her other two friends. They were in guard too, probably feeling the same as her.

"We are surrounded," Kite voiced their thoughts. "Their numbers are great."

They waited for the attack, which they had no idea where it would come from. The ants were everywhere, so it was impossible for them to foretell it. They just kept their guard on.

Seconds later, something stood in front of them and, before they could see anything, smoke started to surround the place.

"Now then... Let's decide order and methodology," the voice inside said. The smoke started to dispel and they saw a giant frog. "As for our targets, you have three choices. One, decide the order in which you will fight. Two, attempt to escape. Three, give up and let us capture you. If you chose option one, you will fight one-on-one battles with us for a chance to survive."

Hitomi smirked a little, amused. _"A chance? Let's hope your pride doesn't kill you, freaking frog..."_ she thought.

"If you choose option one, you will fight one-on-one battles with us for a chance to survive," he continued, as the other ants came out their hiding spot. "I don't recommend the second option. You'll anger us, resulting in a brutal capture and prolonged suffering for all of you. Option three is out of the question. That would anger us even more than option two. So, what will you do?"

Gon, on the other hand, turned around to face Kite.

"Kite..." he called.

"We couldn't have asked for a better deal," he turned around. "One-on-one fights with their Captains. We'll start with whoever is prepared to fight."

"That's me!" Hitomi shouted, energetically.

" _I_ will go," Killua declared quickly.

"No, I will," Gon said, determined.

The three shot each other a death glare, before letting this in luck's hands. They played Rock, Paper and Scissors to decide who would fight. Gon won and the other two lost.

Killua stayed there, glaring at his own 'scissors', that he had threw.

"Oh, man, it doesn't matter. The best is always the least," she grinned. "Well, Killua, I'll let you first."

The boy's eyebrow just twitched involuntarily.

The ants used luck as well. The draw was made and Gon's opponent ended up being an armadillo-like ant whose name was Baro.

"How will the victor be decided?" Gon asked innocently. Baro just looked at him like he was nuts.

"Eh? That should be obvious," he smiled evilly. "Whoever dies first loses."

"We can't just surrender?" Gon frowned.

"Are you crazy?" he was getting irritated with the boy. "If you lose, we'll fed you to the Queen. If you don't beat me, you're guaranteed to die!"

"Yeah, I'm okay with that." Gon nodded, without changing his expression. "But there's no need for you to die. If I beat you, I won't want to eat you. If you surrender, you'll live. But if you lose, you must promise to never eat another human."

There was a minute of silence and then laughing. Hitomi sighed, crossing her arms and feeling impatient. If that continued like that, she would never fight. That was getting into her nerves.

"For goodness sake just kill him, Gon!" she shouted, pissed off. "It's just a freaking ant with human genes!"

Killua gave her a long look before shaking his head with an amused tiny smile in his face. That girl's mouth was just impossible to shut up.

"I'll kill you!" Baro shouted, pissed off.

He then rolled in his belly - like a wheel - right to Gon, who jumped to avoid the attack. He then charged again at him, but when the boy was dodging, the ant pushed himself his tail and changed his direction. He then was hit against a tree.

"Gon!" Killua and Hitomi shouted in worry.

"I'm fine," he assured, standing up.

Baro, on the other hand, started to walk around the tree. Hitomi, on the other hand, just tapped her fingers against her arm, impatiently.

 _"Come on, Gon..."_ she thought. _"What's taking you that long? Just end with it!"_

Killua looked at her and just released a long sigh.

"Kid, I have something to tell you before I kill you," Baro said to Gon. "The main reason we kill humans isn't to eat them or feed them to the Queen."

"Then why is it?" Gon tensed at the statement.

"Because it's fun!" he smiled in a twisted, creepy way. "I love the sound as humans vomit their own organs with a plop! It's hilarious because it looks like barf."

Gon frowned, darkly. "That's isn't funny," he started to slowly walk to him.

"That's it!" Hitomi yelled, excitedly. "Kick that armadi-" she corrected herself. "I mean, ant's butt!"

"Keep it quiet, can't you?" Killua facepalmed.

It ended pretty quickly. The ant charged at Gon again, who released his Nen in anger. He then stopped his attack with his bare arms and raised him in the air while crushing his body. End of it.

"Well, we're in a hurry," Killua said. "Who's my opponent?"

A rhino was his next opponent. Hitomi watched him with a bored expression, praying silently to gods above that match didn't last as long as Gon's.

"You won't be smiling for long. I'm about to show you hell," he said, before pointing at Baro. "I'm nothing like the trash over there."

"Trash?" Gon frowned, a little pissed off.

"Huh? I said trash because he's a trash," the rhino turned at Gon, before directing at Killua again. "I'm ten times stronger than that guy."

"Oh, that's nothing to brag about," the boy smirked.

"What was that?!"

Luckily for Hitomi, Killua defeated the ant in a flash. He used his Shadow Steps on him and tried to stab his chest with his claws, just to find out that his skin was really hard for doing so. Because of that, he started to walk around, disappearing every time the enemy wanted to land a hit and appearing to shot him in that spot with electricity.

 _"Oh,"_ Hitomi smirked, amusingly. _"That's kinda cool."_

The skin ended up cracking, so Killua took advantage of it. Once again, he used his claws to stab it, this time successfully.

"Well, well," the girl clapped her hands to brought the attention to her. "Someone _actually_ strong, with guts to fight me?"

They drawed again the number, and the dog looked at it.

"Number 8! 8 is up!" he called, and then blinked. "Oh, wait... that's me..."

Hitomi facepalmed... Was this supposed to be a joke?

The dog walked forward and she slid into a battle pose anyway. She then tensed, after seeing that a evil glare appeared all of sudden in his eyes. It was like his personality had changed radically.

Hitomi couldn't underestimate her opponent, that was the only thing she was sure of at that moment.

"So, I'm fighting the cute human girl?" he asked, obviously mocking her.

"Yeah," she teased him as well. "And I'm fighting the old fleabag. Wow, that's better."

"Why did you-?" he was getting really pissed off.

"What? You didn't listen? I thought dogs had an strong hearing," she grinned. "Oh well, can't help it. After all, it's losing because of age... I understand, don't worry..."

"You little-!"

At full speed, he ran to her and tried to bite her neck. She dodged the attack quite easily, and the same situation happened twice more.

She then grabbed his hands and grinned playfully. "My turn?" she asked.

Hitomi land a hit in his gut, that hurted like hell to him. His irritation was greater when she saw her there, holding a fang that had just fell from his mouth.

"Lost something?" she teased, waving it around.

He now had lost his precious, perfect fang that he was that proud of. The dog was angered at her, as he decided to use his most powerful tactic.

"Wait..." Hitomi blinked at him. "What are you going to-?"

Too late. Out of blue, the ant started to quickly dig underground. The girl on the other hand raised an eyebrow, in confusion about _that_ move.

"What kind of bone will you hide, doggy?" she asked, mocking him. "Ah, no one. I understand, you're digging your own grave."

Then, a hand grabbed her leg, pulling her like a zombie in a cliché horror movie would do. She then used her hands as support to raise her legs, making the dog get out from his hole. He, however, was fast and dug again instantly after.

He kept attacking her like that from below, and she had no more option than jump everywhere to avoid them. After a while, she reached a tree and leaped to stood in a branch.

"What do you believe you are?" she shouted to him. "A mole?"

"I'm better," he grinned, proudly.

"Oh, is that so?" a vein popped up in her forehead. Then a smile appeared in her face. "Well then, let's see..."

Hitomi stood in a place, waiting quietly for him to attack. When she felt him close, she jumped just in time he raised his head. Hitomi took advantage of that, and kicked him, sending him again underground.

"What's she doing?" Killua raised an eyebrow. "Stop playing around!"

"But this game is fun!" she sheepishly smiled, as she did the same once again. "You should try it sometime. It's called 'Hit the No-So-Mole'!

The boy just facepalmed.

As time passed by, as the girl expected, he couldn't get away from the ground and his movement was getting slower and slower whenever he tried to move.

"Don't you get it?" she smirked as she started to follow where it was, walking calmly. "You'll never be like a mole."

All of them looked at her in confusion. She released a sigh.

"Moles can last long underground because of their high tolerance against carbon dioxide... long story," Hitomi explained lousy. "What it really matters is that you are a dog: an animal no made for low-oxygen places."

The fight ended pretty quickly afterwards. She tapped the ground, making a soft noise that broke it like a heartquake. Once the ant was outside, Hitomi took the tooth she had taken and stabbed it on his head.

"Game over," she sighed, before looking at the ants surrounding the place. "Seriously, guys, can't you get someone... I don't know, _decent?"_

The ants stepped back, looking at the three kids like they were venom. "Hey... Are you kidding?" Hitomi frowned, putting her hands on her hips, as Killua raised an eyebrow at her and Gon sweatdropped.

 _"This is a pleasant surprise. Their Captains can be dispatched easily enough,"_ Kite thought. _"Am I worried over nothing?"_

"Why are you looking at us like we are monsters?" Hitomi continued. "If you didn't notice, _you_ are the monsters here! If you don't believe me buy yourselves a mirror or something like that because-"

She stopped in mid sentence as Kite placed a hand over her shoulder. He walked in front of her and summoned his Crazy Slots. The clown then drawn the number '2' and transformed itself into a huge scythe.

"Killua, Hitomi..." Gon called them.

"That scythe is nasty," Killua completed his thought.

"Wait... don't tell me he is going to..." she trailed off, as an eyebrow twitched in annoyment.

"Gon, Killua, Hitomi... in three seconds, jump up," Kite told them.

They did as they were told to. Three seconds later, the three jumped high in the air, and in a split of second a harsh mass of wind hit them. Because of that, the three got forced to put their arms in front of their face to protect them.

Once in the floor again, they looked at what happened. Hitomi stared at the corpses, annoyed... and stared again. Irritation made a vein pulsate in her forehead.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" she yelled, pointing at the mess. "Why didn't you do that before?!"

"Because you did want to fight them before," he replied simply, and her face fell. "Also, I can't choose this technique for myself, you know."

"Well, you have a point on that..." Hitomi mumbled, defeated, as the scythe disappeared.

"This scythe can be used only with this technique. And it won't disappear until I've used it," Kite then complained. "It's such a drag..."

"And again, why did you choose that power?" Killua and Hitomi mumbled, sweatdropping.

He didn't listen to them, he just walked away. The three exchanged a look, before following him.

"Be cautious as we advance," he calmly said. "As I mentioned, that won't be enough to kill them immediately."

"Just what I needed. Another zombie's movie reference..." Hitomi said, sarcastically. "That's the best horror movie atmosphere ever."

Hitomi then stopped talking, noticing Gon's gaze in the corpses.

"Are you okay? It's only getting worse from here," Kite noticed that too, and directed to Gon. "If you start to sympathize with the enemy, you won't be able to handle what's coming."

"I'm fine," he nodded, determination shining in his big eyes. "I have no sympathy for bugs that call each other trash."

Kite gave him a long look, but didn't say anything. Hitomi looked at the man instead, and little after realized that fact. They walked away, as she stood there for less than a second, before going with them.

 _"Dangerous view,"_ she frowned. _"What happens if... if we found some of these bugs that actually cared for its allies? How could we fight it?"_

* * *

All of sudden, Kite stopped walking. The three kids looked at him, in confusion of what the hell was happening in his head.

"We're being followed," at that sentence, they instantly looked at their backs. "Not from there."

"Wait? Don't tell me..." Hitomi trailed off, before looking at the sky. "From above?"

He didn't say anything, just started to run being followed by the other three. They were trying to get out of their sight, but was impossible to do so.

"They're coming from the left and the right," Kite informed.

He was just right. A dragonfly-like bug flew to Hitomi and another Gon. She snapped her fingers at it but it just avoided the attack, meanwhile the boy tried to punch it in vain. Other more came in next to Killua. Blue sparks shot from his hands, but the insects just dodged the attack.

"Damn," Killua cursed.

"The trees are getting in the way," Gon added. "Shouldn't we get out of the forest?"

"For what? Falling into the trap?" Hitomi said with sarcasm in her voice again. "No, thanks."

Kite just nodded at her, before summoning his Crazy Slots. The number '2' ended up being drawn again and in a split of second Kite had his giant scythe in his hands. At his signal, the three jumped high one more time.

And when they touched the floor, they found themselves in a long praire, since the trees had been chopped down. Also, they made eye contact with the three ants behind the plan: a lion, who looked like he was the leader, a girl and a dragonfly.

All of sudden, he lion looked disencouraged. He sighed and turned around. Like that, the three of them left the place.

"He was able to understand that he was outclassed, and he calmly backed down at once. Most likely, he was a Squadron Leader," Kite explained, as they looked at their backs. "We're following them. Their nest must be nearby. If we follow them, we will find the Queen."

* * *

"They're continuing to go straight," Kite informed, as they continued to follow them. "The Chimera Ant nest must be up ahead."

The three of them gave him a look of disbelief.

"Amazing..." Killua muttered. "He's been picking them up for this entire time, never losing them for an instant."

"Kite said he could use En within a radius of forty-five meters." Gon added.

"I've heard that Nen masters can handle around fifty meters... Kite is nearly there," the boy explained. "Actually, given that he's kept it up for an entire night, he's probably stronger."

"Stronger than a master, huh?" Hitomi whistled. "Then Kite's the real deal."

"Yeah," Killua nodded. "He's the first real pro Hunter we've met. Tsezgerra was a pro Hunter but we really only knew him as another player in a game. Bisky is an incredible Hunter. But to us she was our Nen mentor. And the first to teach us Nen..."

"Glasses-san," Hitomi completed.

"Yeah," Gon nodded, energetically. "He was our Nen master and savior."

"Looking back, we always meet the right people just when we need them most," Killua smiled at his friends. "And those people have all made us stronger."

"Razor, too, huh?" Gon asked and they nodded.

"It's clear that Ging really did create Greed Island to train you," Hitomi added. "And once you beat the game, he deliberately led you to Kite."

Gon grinned, thinking about his father. Killua nodded at her, looking at Kite who was walking in front of them.

"I'm not sure if Ging predicted what would happen when we met Kite. But he certainly knew that you would like the man who earned Ging's respect," he said. "And he knew without a doubt that you would go with Kite."

"He wants us to get stronger by travelling with Kite," Gon's grin widened.

"Wow," Hitomi said, sarcastically. "That's a pretty training ground, by the way."

"This is pretty brutal place for training," Killua agreed, sighing.

"That's why I keep asking if your resolve is firm," Kite jumped in the conversation. "As you mentioned, Ging-san probably had certain expectations when he sent you to me. But I do not intend to train you during this journey. We don't have that kind of time. I brought you along because I thought you might be of use. From here, it all comes down to resolve. If it's strong, you'll develop you Nen and grow strong via combat. If it's weak, the Ants will eat you."

Hitomi just narrowed her eyes, but kept silent.

"But we can't die... we are Pro Hunters. Those who call themselves Hunters always get their prey," the man continued. "For Hunters, that is the first commandment. A hunt involves both hunter and prey. It is battle of resolve. Emerging victorious from a battle of resolve is what makes a successful hunt. The loser has to follow the winner's rules and customs. Usually, this means the losers death."

"Rules..." Gon repeated.

"If you don't want that result, then win. Improving your Nen is important, of course. But to be a successful Hunter, you must understand your enemy and yourself."

"Th-That's why... That's why you hit me back then!" Gon realized. "That was the forest's rule and custom. You taught me the rules in Ging's place."

The man seemed to remember something and stopped in his tracks. Out of his pocket, he grabbed a license card and gave it to Gon.

"This is Ging-san's," he explained, surprising Gon. "Do you remember what my final test was?"

"Yeah, to find Ging," the boy nodded.

"Before the test began, Ging-san gave this to me. He said I should use it to find him..." Gon took it and looked at it in amazement. "I planned to return it to him once I did."

"Huh?" he asked. "He wouldn't take it back?"

"No…" Kite admitted. "I completely forgot I had it."

Killua and Gon's faces fell while Hitomi facepalmed.

 _"What kind of Hunter forgets his License?"_ she thought, irritated. _"I think now I understand who he inherited his eventual stupidness from..."_

"Gon, you said that you're going to find Ging-san on your own, right?" Kite asked, Gon nodded. "Then you have to do it. And would you return this for me?"

"Sure! But first, I have to finish this job with you to get a lot stronger. After that, I'll find Ging and give this back. I promise!"

"I'm counting on you."

Hitomi and Killua couldn't help but smile a little because of that scene.

"Well, let's get a move on before we lose the trail," and then, Kite started walking again.

* * *

A chill ran through Hitomi's back as Kite stopped in his tracks. His face was awfully pale and drops of sweat were running in his face, which it was not a good thing. She was sure, something bad was going to happen, and right _now._

"That's a monster," Kite mumbled. "What's this? I can't believe it!"

The boys were confused. Hitomi frowned, still looking at the Hunter's expression. It was something between worry and fear, but she just couldn't put her finger on it.

"What's wrong, Kite?" Gon asked

"Gon, Hitomi, Killua! Run! Hurry up! Get out here!" the other three froze. Kite jumped and tried to run towards them. "GET AWAY FROM ME!"

Everything was too fast for Hitomi to realize what was happening. All she could see was blood, and Kite's arm flying out of his body. Killua and Gon were exactly as her, being shocked a couple of steps in front of the girl.

And for the first time she could remember, Hitomi's eyes shone in scarlet furiously, at the highest scale. But this time, it wasn't because of anger or something like that.

It was fear. The girl was frightened.

Despite of her clouded mind, she noticed something. The monster, a cat-like one. The monster was looking at the boys, like a predator could look at their prey.

And the next time she knew, she was grabbing her friend's arms and pulling them out the way. Blood was pouring out her stomach, as she bit her lip to bear the pain she was feeling not only in the wounded part, but in all her body. She now was cursing, once again, the lack of feeling control she held.

"HITOMI!" they yelled.

The ant withdrew her claws and Hitomi coughed a little of blood. Right before the cat could attack once again, Killua took her and got further from it.

"Idiot!" he yelled at her. "Get a grip, can't you?!"

"I would if I could, dumbass," she replied, weakly, as she tried to remain in her feet. She would be in the ground now, if it wasn't for Killua's support.

Gon on the other hand, looked at Kite and Hitomi blankly and then glared at the cat, as he released his Nen in pure anger. He cried in rage, but he suddenly shut up. Killua had just hit him hard in the neck.

And before he could fall in the ground, he placed him over his shoulder.

"Good decision, Killua," Kite said, holding his wound. "Take Gon and Hitomi, and run!"

The girl had no time nor strength to protest. Killua grabbed her wrist and dragged her out the place. And like this, they ran for a lot of time under the rain, aware that there were ants following them now.

 _"We were overconfident,"_ Killua thought. _"The three of us were still weaker than Kite, who'd lost an arm. That thing knew."_

He then glanced briefly at the girl, who was trying to keep his pace because of her injuries.

 _"Things went as you thought, eh?"_ he frowned slightly. _"If Kite had been alone, this probably wouldn't have happened. We were fools!"_

Then Hitomi tripped, slipping from Killua's grasp. He turned around to help her, but froze after hearing the monsters coming closer to them.

"Forget about me, big idiot," Hitomi mumbled, trying to stand up. "Just get away with Gon."

"But-" he tried to protest.

"JUST GO!"

She tried to stand up, but she just couldn't. Like that, she blacked out.

Killua's mind was in a rush. A part of him wanted to take Hitomi and get away together. But the other part was holding him back.

 _"She will only slower you, Killua,"_ the annoying voice in his head said. _"You need to run away. Save yourself."_

"Shut up!" he yelled, as his head started to hurt.

After a lot of effort, he managed to take Hitomi in his other shoulder and run away before something else happened.

* * *

Luckily the rain had stopped and Gon had woke up minutes before now. Killua was walking at his side, carrying Hitomi in his back, but in silence. The other boy didn't talk either. He just walked quietly, his gaze fixed in the ground he was stepping in.

"Want me to carry her?" Gon asked, a little unsure.

"No," he said dryly, between gasps. "It's okay."

They went outside NGL and Killua placed Hitomi's body in a tree meanwhile Gon called the amateurs Hunters and explained the situation.

The white-head, on the other hand, sat down tiredly and looked at the girl. She was deadly pale, what made him worry a little. Gently, he reached out her cheek and frowned more. Hitomi was freezing.

Killua released a long sigh, taking out his shirt. He then covered the girl with it, hoping that it would help, even a little.

"They are coming," Gon told him. "They said they have reinforcements."

"I see..." he mumbled.

The boy gave his friend a sad look, before sitting as well.

After a while, a truck stopped close to them. From it, three men walked out. A slender, black haired, one. A big one, who carried a huge pipe over his shoulder. And an old man that surprised the other two after seeing him.

"Chairman Netero!" Gon shouted, in surprise.

The big man looked at the three kids and smirked.

"What's this? They're just kids," he said. "If you're here to play, you'll get burned. Go back home."

Gon clenched his fists and growled, while Killua just frowned.

"Stop it, Morel-san," the other one said, pushing his glasses further against his nose. "That isn't nice. They're only children."

The kids didn't say anything. Netero, on the other hand, laughed.

"You look pretty defeated," he commented. "Was the enemy that strong?"

They clenched his teeth, in anger.

"One of them could use Nen. That was the worst aura I've ever encountered," Killua confessed. "Worse than my brother's… worse than Hisoka's…

"If Killua hasn't knocked me out, I'd be dead right now," Gon agreed.

"Now that I've learned Nen myself, I can tell. You guys are unbelievably strong," the boy looked at them. "But I still can't see you defeating that thing…"

"Whenever humans encounter the unknown, they tend to lose perspective," the black haired man said. "Currently, you're experiencing a state of panic. We'll take it from here, so go lie in bed."

Gon gritted his teeth harder.

"You're no better than I am, Knov," Morel laughed.

"No way!" Gon suddenly stood up, angrily, ignoring Morel's comment. "After getting this far... We can't-!"

"Gon!" Killua didn't spare him a glance.

The boy gave his friend a long look, understanding what he meant. He released a long sigh, and continued to glare the men.

"Kid," Morel turned to Killua. "The minute you start talking about who can win in a Nen fight, you're wrong. In most cases, you won't know your opponent's abilities. One instant of carelessness is all it takes to turn the tables and cost a life. You can't make assumptions based on the amount of aura displayed. The battle can turn at any point. That's what fighting with Nen means."

Killua's eyes shone with pain, still looking at the ground.

"But regardless, you must always fight certain of victory. That's a Nen user's spirit," he concluded. "The moment you were overwhelmed by the opponent's aura and fled, you were disqualified. You're lower than a loser!"

Angry with the man talking that way to his friend, Gon took a step closer. They exchanged a glare.

"Morel, that's enough," Knov stopped all possible fight.

Netero, on the other hand, spotted Hitomi there.

"Is Hitomi asleep?" he asked.

Killua narrowed his eyes, looking at her by the corner of her eye.

"She protected us from the ant, and got injured. The wound itself is not dangerous, but..." his throat went dry all of sudden, remembering it. "The idiot put a strong condition in her Nen... and the risk is that she can die depending of the strength of the opponent."

"That kid shows some promise, then," Morel laughed, just before being scolded again by Knov.

Netero, on the other hand, gave her a long look.

"Don't worry, she'll live," he said, surprising the two. "Maybe, if it was a little before in time, she could have died. But you three had become stronger. She'll make it in no time."

After that, the three started to walk away.

"We sent three assassins to the nearest village. It's your decision whether you want to fight," he then threw three tokens over his shoulder. "But you must defeat them before you come. If you wish to live as Hunters…"

Then Gon took them from the floor and gazed at them with curiosity.

"We are not desperate for help," he concluded. "We only seek the strong."

* * *

 _"To Killua, Gon and Hitomi:_

 _Will you fight?! Or not?!"_

"Hey, Killua," Gon looked out the black board and glanced at his friend. "What do we do?"

He didn't answer, and walked away. Gon gave the boy a long, sad look before following him. Once in a room of a hotel, he laid Hitomi there and sat down next to her. Gon excused himself and went to do something else.

 _"The moment you were overwhelmed by the opponent's aura and fled, you were disqualified,"_ he remembered Morel's words.

He narrowed his eyes, pained.

 _"I am no longer qualified..."_ he thought.

"Killua," a voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He looked at the source, and found Hitomi awake, and well. "I... uh... thanks."

He was surprised, but didn't say anything else. "Why would you thank me?" he mumbled, hiding his eyes behind his bangs.

"You didn't left me behind and stopped Gon from doing something stupid," she told him. "If you didn't do so, all four of us could have died there."

"But I ran away," he gritted her teeth. "And I let Kite die.."

The girl gave him a long sad look, before grinning widely.

"Who said that?" she said, making Killua look at her. "He can be still alive. You just can't give up now."

Killua looked at her warm smile, and couldn't help but smile as well. Until now, he didn't know that he was that worried about her dying. He was glad that she was alive now, that was all it mattered.

 _"Hitomi, you're light,"_ he then looked away, still keeping his smile. _"Sometimes, you shine so brightly I must look away. But even so, is it still okay if I stay at your side?"_

"Sometimes you are so alike Gon," he smirked.

"Huh?" she blinked.

"Anyway, let's go with him," Killua stood up. "He was worried about you too."

* * *

 _"To Killua, Gon and Hitomi:_

 _Will you fight?! Or not?!_

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _We welcome you anytime!"_

* * *

End of the chapter! I'm sad Kite is dead, but that's how things are :(

 **JokeLover123** **:** Point taken, you are right... No one is creepier than Hisoka... Anyway, thanks for reviewing and I hope you liked this chapter :D

 **Kri:** Thanks for reviewing and I wish you had fun here! :)

 **Elisablackcat** **:** Thanks for leaving a review! Hope you liked it

 **SoulXHunter:** Sorry about that :( I'm going to do my best to improve. Thank you for leaving a review and I hope you liked this chapter!

 **Mr. Kohen** **:** Good to see you around again! Thanks for reviewing and I wish you liked this update :D

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for paying this fic a visit! Hope you had fun :)

See you all later!


	30. Bisky! x Getting Stronger x The Meeting

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 30: Bisky! x Getting Stronger x Unexpected Meeting**

Hitomi watched in confusion at the tokens that Killua was flipping in the air.

"What are those?" she asked.

"Tokens. You take a piece of marked wood and split it, giving each half to a different person," Killua explained. "They work as proof that you're an ally or to authenticate a document."

The girl's eyebrow twitched in annoyment. "I know that much," she mumbled. "Thank you very much."

"Well, in this case, each of the three assassins holds one matching token," he continued. "We defeat them and take the tokens."

The three went again to the board, just to find something. The writing had been erased, that meant that someone had checked it.

"You must be Killua, Hitomi and Gon," a creepy female voice said behind them. They turned around to see a rather... special girl. "Nice to meet you. My name is Palm. It's a pleasure."

The three kids tensed at the sight of the girl.

 _"Sure that your name is Palm?"_ Hitomi said in her mind. _"Sadako would do just better..."_

"Oh dear. No need to be so tense," she said. "I imagine the Chairman probably didn't provide many details. Allow me to explain. Why don't we have some tea?"

And like that, they got forced to follow her to the café. The kids just stared at the large pile of sugar that Palm had just added in her tea.

 _"And I thought that I had enough with Killua's sugar addiction..."_ the girl shook her head.

"I am a student of Knov-sensei. He said I would only get in his way," she stated. "But I insisted on accompanying him."

"Ah..." Hitomi blinked. "Who?"

"She probably means one of the guys with Chairman Netero," Killua explained.

"Yes, the one wearing a black suit," she kept adding sugar, making the three feel a little sick. "My teacher is an incredible person. Cool, intelligent, composed... Ah, composed and cool mean the same thing! Oh, dear… Oh, but I only respect him, that's all. There's nothing romantic about my feelings…"

"Oh, I can tell..." Hitomi sweatdropped.

"At least, I may wish that were the case. After all, when it comes to falling in love, respect is a major factor," she continued. "Ah, my teacher knows nothing about this, of course. I haven't said a word to him, and I don't intend to. No one can say what will happen..." she then drank her tea, and the kids grimaced. "After all, love is spontaneous thing, don't you agree?"

"Well, you can be right about that," Hitomi took a sip of her own drink.

Gon stared at her and blinked, before looking at Killua. He noticed his grin and, minutes after, understood what he meant. He blushed furiously.

"You're just wrong!" he told him, embarrassed.

"I wonder~" he looked away, without dropping his smile.

The boy gave his friend a long look, before sighing in annoyment.

"Uh, can I interrupt you?" Killua asked. "Aren't we supposed to fight you?"

"Huh? Oh, dear... Yes, I apologize," she told them. "The Chairman and my teacher said I couldn't accompany them any farther. But I insisted on going with them. It feels like I spent a lifetime just trying to convince them of my determination. And finally, they relented, with one condition."

The kids blinked at her.

"Uh, I'm asking about-" the boy trailed off.

"My teacher may appear a cold person, but he's quite gentle," she cut him off. "But you have to spend a lot of time with him to realize that. Ah, by 'spending time with him' I don't mean-"

"Okay!" pissed off, Killua stood up and slammed his hands against the table. "What's the condition?!"

"Knuckle, Shoot and the other brat's defeat," Hitomi raised an eyebrow, since Palm didn't mention the last one. "To think those vulgar barbaric, unmannered brats will be allowed inside NGL before me... I can't allow that."

"Uh..." Hitomi tried to get more information. "May I know the 'brat's' name?"

"I just can't say it... Everytime I try to say the word, it just dies down in my throat..." Palm started to tremble in anger, as the tea started to overflow the cup. "That brat... Just remembering his name... his face... It makes me sick..."

"Whoa, got it! Got it!" Hitomi said, panicking.

"Palm-san!" Gon tried to stop her as well. "Turn off your Hatsu!"

And, in the end, the boy ended up cleaning the table. He was disappointed, though, since she was an Enhancer like him.

"Knuckle, Shoot and... _the brat?"_ he asked, a little unsure. "Not us?"

"I'm glad, though," Hitomi mumbled under her breath.

"That's right. After all, I'm not the one who's supposed to defeat these three. You guys are," she pointed at them. "Knuckle and Shoot are Morel-san's students. The other one is a Knov-sensei's student, like me. They too, received a condition. I don't know what that condition was. But whether it's us or them, only on group will be allowed into NGL. The deadline is one month."

* * *

"Man! That woman is just weird," Killua sighed, as he with Hitomi walked through the city, searching for clues.

"Well, I see your point," Hitomi laughed softly. "I bet she thinks she is inside some romance novel."

Killua gave her a long look, folding his arms behind his head. "And if it were one, I wonder who would be that sick to read something like that," he smirked.

"Actually, a lot of people like that kind of things. The teacher-student relationship, I mean," Killua blinked. "You know, forbidden love. It appears in a lot of mangas, books... A lot of girls like it."

"Wow, that's strange."

"What?" she gave him an annoyed look.

"You know, talking about love like this," he laughed. "You sound like a girl."

"Well," her eyebrow twitched slightly, as she flushed in embarrassment. "Sorry for _being_ a girl."

They kept walking, there was just silence between the two.

"But I still can't understand it," Killua commented. "I mean, why doesn't she tell him that for once?"

"Because there are some girls who like the boys to take the first step," she commented. "Even though it can be a little... I don't know, old fashioned?"

A distant memory crossed the boy's head, and a small blush covered his pale face. He looked at the ground and bit his lip. He wasn't going to say it in any way.

"And if the girl kisses the boy first, but not in the lips. Does it still count as a first step?"

"Huh?" Hitomi looked at him, blinking.

"Ah?" Killua's blush increased. _"Don't tell me I actually asked it...?"_

"Well, yeah," she smiled awkwardly. "Why?"

"Uh, nothing," he hid his eyes under his bangs. "Just asking."

He walked past her, and the confused expression of the girl transformed into a huge grin.

"Eh? It can't be," she joked. "Are you into shojo manga?"

"DEFINITELY NOT!" he yelled, embarrassed. "Just forget what I said, got it?"

"Ah, but-!"

"MY NAME IS KNUCKLE BINE!" a shout cut her off.

Sweatdropping the two looked at a man, holding a flag that said 'Bring it on'. They then decided to remain quiet, walking past him.

"I am a Beast Hunter! I challenge the three punitive force candidates to a duel! Come tonight at midnight sharp, and face me!" he yelled. "I won't try to run or hide. I won't bring any weapons or allies. It'll just be me and me alone. So come and fight me! A man never turns his back on an enemy."

"Good thing I'm a girl, then," she mumbled to Killua. "Either way, he didn't say where."

"Even if he said where, I wouldn't go," and Hitomi had no more option than agree with him.

* * *

"He's just a decoy," Killua explained, when they met with Gon. "His partners are probably hidden somewhere, watching. They're watching to see if anyone reacts suspiciously. According to Palm, they don't even know our names. So their goal must be to smoke us out. No one's stupid enough to do all that for real."

"Did he look strong?" Gon asked

"He's pretty strong," Killua nodded.

"But stupid too," Hitomi sipped in her orange juice.

"What will it take to defeat him?"

"No idea," the girl shook her head.

"One of the Hunters with the Chairman said that in a Nen battle, nothing is certain. So, according to him, it's wrong for me to judge if a fight can be won. I disagree. If you want to survive, you must increase your odds of victory. Gauging the strength differential between you and an opponent is crucial."

Hitomi just looked at him, narrowing her eyes.

"If you're up against someone you can only beat once or twice out of a hundred times, don't bother. You need at least a fifty percent chance. If possible, greater than seventy percent is preferable," he explained. "To reach that, we must do two things. Work on our fundamentals, and learn more about our opponents' abilities."

"Right," Gon nodded.

"If we know our opponents' abilities, it'll be easier to plan ahead. Like we did with Genthru."

"I'm half agreed, half opposed," Gon stated. "I think we should work on our fundamentals, but I don't think we need to know their abilities."

"Huh? Why not? That just increases our risk of defeat," Killua scolded. "Nothing good can come of that!"

"But that's what we'll be facing in NGL. Our goal isn't to defeat Knuckle, Shoot and... whoever is the third one. It's to become stronger, and return to NGL to save Kite. In other words, we must be strong enough to defeat enemies we know nothing about. Winning here with advance preparation is pointless."

After finishing eating, the three went back to the hotel, still talking about the same thing.

"Right, but we have to defeat these opponents first," Hitomi said. "And we have just a freaking month."

"That's too long. One week," Gon said. "In one week, we'll be stronger and heading back to NGL!"

"That's-!"

 _ **SMACK!**_

Before someone could say anything, the door opened and a fist send Gon flying in the air. Killua hissed like a cat, while Hitomi blinked at the scene.

"Are you an idiot?!" a familiar voice shouted.

The three looked at her and gaped.

"Bisky!" they exclaimed."Why are you here?"

"I asked her to come," Palm appeared from behind.

"Huh?" they asked, still in the same time."You know each other?".

"No, I looked into your backgrounds."

"How? We only know Bisky because..." Gon trailed off.

Then, a creepy aura surrounded her and the three sweatdropped.

 _"Ugh, I think I don't wanna know..."_ Hitomi sighed.

"Once I used my power, it was quite simple. Now, there's no time to spare. Let's begin... The plan to slaughter those three"

Hitomi got closer to Killua. "I feel bad for them," she whispered. He nodded.

Once inside, Biscuit stood in front of the three.

"Let's get started, then."

"Osu!"

 ** _SMACK!_**

"What was that for?!" Gon whined.

"I'm picking up where I left off. Are you stupid? That old man's famous for his nasty nature. If he tells you to do something in a month, it probably should take an entire year. You won't defeat them after a week!"

"But we have to hurry back and save Kite," he complained.

"What are you talking about?"

And like that, Gon explained to her the whole story, beginning from where they left her using Accompany.

"I see..." she said after all, before scolding him. "All the more reason you shouldn't return without proper training! What if you make the same mistake again?!"

"So typical of her age..." Killua mumbled.

"Yeah," Hitomi agreed. "She's always ready with a lecture."

Then, the woman turned around to face them when she finished with Gon. And told them to start to Ren, and so they did.

"Maintain that for three hours."

The three gave her a surprised look.

"Killua, Hitomi. How long can you last?" Gon asked.

"In top condition, I can probably manage fifty-five minutes, max," Killua replied.

"Yeah, I'm in somewhere close there," Hitomi said.

"Until you complete this, we can't move to the next step," Biscuit laughed. "Train like your lives are on the line!"

Fifty-five minutes later, Gon fell in his knees and Hitomi looked at him, feeling exhausted. She gasped for air, before resting her hands on her knees as well. After a bit, Killua did the same.

"Come on, you didn't even last an hour. Keep working," she scolded, flipping a page of the magazine she was reading. The three forced themselves into their original positions and started again. "They say it takes a month to add ten minutes to your Ren endurance. You won't have time to sleep."

"Wow, thanks for the encouragement," Hitomi panted, annoyed.

* * *

The three kids let themselves fall in the floor, after managing keep Ren up for three hours. They were all soaked in sweat, gasping for air.

"We did it.." Gon mumbled.

"I can't move an inch..." Killua complained.

"Wanna sleep..." Hitomi groaned.

"What are you talking about?" Biscuit clapped her hands. "Stand up! We're going out. To see Knuckle."

The three kids looked at her, in confusion.

"In this condition?" Hitomi pointed at herself. "I can't move at all."

"See? You moved your hand, so you can move," the girl flinched at the statement. "Let's go."

The kids sat up and looked at her.

"Tell us why we're going to see Knuckle," Killua asked.

"Geez, don't ask questions with obvious answers. To fight him!" the three got surprised at her answer. "Okay, let's go!"

"What are you talking about?" Killua asked. "We still have time. What if we lose?"

"You just try again. Whether you win or lose isn't important. All that matters is who ends up with the tokens, right?" Biscuit stated "Which means you must take theirs. If it looks like you'll lose, run. Then try again the next day. From here on, you'll practice Ren for three hours a day after that, you'll challenge Knuckle. And you'll continue until you win."

After that, the three made their way towards Knuckle's place. He was in a park, waiting for them. At the sight of his opponents, he got angry, and walked towards them.

"If I'm being compared to a trio of kids, they must not think I'm very strong... A duel is a battle to the death. Serious business! It's best to fight five hours after a good night's sleep," he scolded. "So what's with you kids? You're completely worn out! Were you just swimming or something, eh? Take this seriously! You kids can never defeat me."

They backed off a little, releasing the little Nen they had left. But then, they noticed something and blinked.

"Are you crying?" Gon asked, innocently.

"S-Stupid. Wh-Why would I cry? I'm not upset about this," he took a couple of steps back. "Th-Th-These are just well, uh... Tears from laughing too much, fool. I'll kill you, get it? So don't tell anyone!"

"Oh, yeah," Hitomi raised an eyebrow, placing her hands on her hips.

"Punch me! I'll show you how much stronger I really am. And you'll realize that I don't need to bother dodging your punches. Hit me as many times as you like. But if I don't take a step from this spot, leave your tokens behind. This is the best chance you'll have! You kids would need a hundred years before you could try fighting me!"

"I see..." Hitomi looked at her friend. "Gon, your chance."

"But-" he tried to argue.

"Come on," she pushed him forward. "Go, go. You know what to do."

Knuckle raised an eyebrow at her, and she ignored him. Gon stood in front of the man, and slid into his typical pose.

"First comes Rock," he chanted. "Rock, Paper... Rock!"

And like that, the man flew a few meters behind. The three walked to him, with curiosity.

"Knuckle-san?" Gon called him.

"You okay?" Killua asked.

"Dead yet?" Hitomi asked.

"I... trusted... you..." Knuckle fell unconscious, in a rather dramatic way.

Hitomi couldn't help it, and started to laugh hard at the peculiar scene. Gon blinked at her, and then to the fallen man.

"What's with them?" he asked.

"Obviously, he's a total idiot," Killua sighed. "And Hitomi's too, but in another way."

"Hey!" she whined.

* * *

"Oh, are you awake?" Gon asked when Knuckle woke up. He just looked at them, in confusion.

The three were training.

"You're stronger than I thought. Guess I underestimated you..." he confessed., before reaching the token inside his pocket. "Why didn't you take this? You should've taken the token and ditched me."

"We don't want your token. We want the strength to defeat you in a straight-up fight," Gon said. "Could I ask you something? Why did you become a Beast Hunter?"

"It's a long story," he said. "And it brings back bad memories."

"Then, why did you volunteer for the punitive force?" Hitomi asked now.

"Simply put, to keep it from doing its job. I don't like the idea of cutting off whatever doesn't fit the mold. My teacher says I'm just a softy. But you can't judge something that you've never seen before... First, you have to exchange blows," he then looked at Gon. "You're a good kid. Now that we've fought, I see that."

"You too."

"Huh?"

Gon just pointed at a bump in the covers. A puppy then went out there and walked towards Knuckle, its tail waving happily.

"You!" he exclaimed, picking it up.

"He wouldn't leave your side," Hitomi commented.

They then grinned, as the man tried to hold his tears from rolling out his eyes, and denying that he was crying. Then, they all went to eat Palm's food.

"You look like an idiot," she smiled. "But you know what? I think I prefer good-hearted idiots than cold-hearted brats."

Knuckle looked at her at the instant. His heart skipped a beat when he looked at her face... cute violet eyes... warm smile...

"Somehow, I like you," she admitted with a shrug.

"Eh?" he blushed furiously, looking away. "Thanks... I think..."

Gon blinked, looking cluelessly at the situation. Knuckle was now laughing nervously as he scratched the back of his neck while Killua glared at him, his eyebrow twitching involuntary.

 _"What the hell is with this guy?"_ Killua's eyes didn't leave the man.

Knuckle then stopped laughing and kept silent for a while, looking at the shits for a little more.

"Fight me anytime you want," he said all of sudden. "I'll give you as many tries as you want. But it's impossible for you to beat me in the twenty days left."

"Just watch," Hitomi smirked.

* * *

The kids had managed their three hours quota, and now they were facing Knuckle again. He stood still, arms crossed over his chest.

"It's on Knuckle!" Gon said.

"Yeah, let's go! I'll take you three on at once!"

"I won't say a word about how you're condescending to us..." Killua said, in determination.

"We're more than happy to accept!" Hitomi agreed.

"Let's go, guys!" Gon shouted.

Gon tried to kick Knuckle's head meanwhile the other two did the same in his feet. The man, on the other hand, avoided Hitomi and Killua's hit and blocked Gon's one.

Hitomi stood a meters behind meanwhile Killua tried to land a hit again, but got blocked again. She jumped and tried to punch him form the back, but he ducked and hit her instead. She flipped in the air and stood on the ground. Meanwhile, Gon tried to do the same. Knuckle, however, grabbed his fist and threw him in the air, colliding with Killua, who caught it.

"Come on," Knuckle smirked. "I have no time to waste playing around with you brats and... and lady!"

"Lady?" Killua mumbled, in annoyment. "Why the hell do we have a side treatment?"

And like that, they charged at him again.

Behind the trees, however, someone was watching them. He didn't change his expression, as the three got hit over and over again.

 _"Given his personality, he's probably already warmed to these opponents. I doubt he'd sell me out,"_ he thought. _"But it's probable that he'll accidentally say something he shouldn't. My chance will come after they leave. I will defeat them..."_

"Don't overthink things like these, Shoot," a male, but kind of delicate, voice said.

He turned around to see Knov's student. He was the youngest among the three but strong as well, and his face could be easily mistaken with a girl's: bright blue eyes and short, silky, blond hair.

His eyes traveled to his future enemies and went wide. He took a step back abruptly, making his chains clench together, slightly.

Hitomi, on the other side, froze a little. Her glance went slowly to the trees, but the darkness didn't allow her to see anything.

"What's wrong, Hitomi?" Killua asked her, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Ah, nothing!" she yelled, before charging at Knuckle again. _"I swear I'd just heard chains..."_

Shoot, on the other hand, looked at the boy in wonder.

"You know them?" he asked.

"Yes, kind of," he mumbled. "But it doesn't matter. They're still the enemy... so..."

The man looked over his partner, not sure of what to think of the situation.

* * *

The three kids stared at the food made by Palm, trying to not to drool over it. They then started to eat, happily.

"What do you think?" Palm asked.

"Oh! This is really good!" Gon grinned.

"Not that! We only have ten days left. From what I've seen, you're only two-thirds through your training to become strong enough to force Knuckle into using his full strength..."

 _"She knows exactly what's going on..."_ Biscuit thought a little as Hitomi glared at her.

"But it'll be fine! We'll definitely beat him before the deadline!" Gon didn't lose his smile.

"How can you be so sure?! The situation hasn't improved at all!"

Hitomi, Biscuit and Killua flinched, feeling the deathly aura surrounding the girl.

"You said it was all right for me to speak up, so I will. You have no chance to defeat Knuckle! They didn't give you enough time... Lately, I find myself gripping a kitchen knife, staring at it to calm myself."

"Wow... that's a rather... uh, _relaxing_ hobby," Hitomi mumbled, sarcastically. Killua just glared at her and sighed.

"That means I'm nearly over the edge, so if you run at once, before it's too late, I probably won't try to chase and kill you."

The other three just resumed eating, feeling the dark aura surrounding her. _"If not for her outbursts, this would be a pleasant meal..."_ they thought.

"We aren't gonna run away," Gon stated. "How many times do I have to say it?"

"What else can you do? As you currently are, you cannot defeat Knuckle!"

"We'll win! Pinky swear," he held his pinky finger for her. "Come on, Hurry up!" he entangled his own finger in the girl's "I pinky swear that we'll beat these three before the deadline. If I break my promise, I have to swallow a thousand needles... Pinky sworn! On the island I'm from, there's another part," he placed his thumb in the girl's one. "Sealed with a kiss!"

And like that, Palm went from the deadly, creepy monster to the lovestruck, girly girl.

"Gon's getting really good at handling Palm," Killua continued to eat.

"Damn too good..." Hitomi sweatdropped.

"I suspect she's the one leading things in that direction..." Biscuit said, before mumbling. "Ten days left..."

"Don't say that like a countdown to our death!" Killua snapped at her.

"Short life we had," Hitomi sighed.

"Not you too!"

* * *

"Ok!" Biscuit announced. "That's three hours!"

"Oh? Already?" Killua was surprised.

"Are you kidding-?" Hitomi then realized she was right when she looked at the clock.

"That seemed fast," Gon commented.

"Then, I'll give you a thirty-minute break," Biscuit told them.

"Aren't we supposed to fight Knuckle now?" Gon asked.

"You can go once you're rested. Defeat him," Biscuit smirked, "You have little over a day before the Chairman's deadline. This may be your first and last chance."

Thirty minutes later, the trio made their way to Knuckle at the same place as always. He looked at them and smirked.

"Seems you kids are serious tonight."

"Before we begin, I want to know where your partners are," Gon said.

"Why do you want to know that? You're about to get the crap knocked out of you."

"We need all three tokens," Hitomi smirked.

"That's a riot!" he chuckled. "If you defeat me, I'll tell you."

"We might not get a chance to ask you then. You might be out cold," Killua stated, pissing Knuckle off.

"You're no longer amusing me..." he punched his own hand.

"Oh, sorry for not being the clown that Gon once portrayed me of," Hitomi joked.

Killua then facepalmed.

Gon's battle started, as he charged towards him and tried to land a punch on him. Knuckle instantly avoided the attack and hit him, sending him a meter behind.

And like that, they fought a little more. He ended up sending flying Gon once again, who stood up one more time.

"Hey, aren't you going to use that 'First comes Rock' thing? Well, you won't be able to use that technique. It's flawed, after all," Knuckle commented and Gon gritted his teeth. "A word of advice... If you try that technique, I'll stop you in your tracks. In a one-on-one match, you'd better not try it. Your technique has two huge weaknesses!"

Hitomi and Killua didn't say anything. They wanted to know it.

"So, Gon..." Knuckle asked him. "What did you name that technique?"

That was when he realized he hadn't thought about a name yet.

"Ja-Jaken!" Gon stuttered.

"Wow, zero effort..." Killua mumbled.

"And really original," Hitomi added, sarcastically.

"Jajaken… I understand," Knuckle nodded. "You combined 'jajan' for 'ta-dah', with 'janken' for your attack 'Rock, Paper and Scissors'."

"Ah, no..." Gon trailed off.

"Not a bad name, kid!" Knuckle exclaimed.

And then, Hitomi started to laugh. She laughed a little too hard.

"Uh, yeah... Guess I'm okay with that."

Killua glared at the girl, and she finally shut up.

"Gon, your Jajanken has two huge weaknesses. First, it takes too long to charge. During a fight, you don't have time to stand still for several seconds. I wouldn't count on having the time charge it."

"I know that," Gon nodded.

Hitomi was about to comment something about that but suddenly tensed. Again, she could have sworn that she had heard a soft noise, but when she looked at the trees, she spotted no one.

And it sounded once again. It was like chain rustling.

 _"There's someone there,"_ she narrowed her eyes. _"I'm sure about it."_

Knuckle, on the other hand, held another finger to him.

"Second, it's too risky. When you focus aura in your fist to increase power, you have less aura for defense. One attack to the wrong place will take you out, fool!"

"I know the risks. That's why I've spent the past month training to compensate for them!"

And like that, they started to fight again.

"Gon's determination is something that it amuses me a little," Killua mumbled.

No one answered, not like he was used to. He turned around to see Hitomi, but there was no trace of her anywhere.

 _"That idiot!"_ he thought. _"Where did she got into?!"_

* * *

Hitomi ran through the forest, following her hunch. She needed to know. She needed to find who had been staring at them all this time.

"Hitomi," a familiar voice ran through her ears.

The girl tensed, before noticing that the person that she was trying to find was right behind her. Slowly, she turned around to face the boy.

And her eyes went wide, in shock.

"Kurapika!" she shouted, and he nodded. "What are you doing here?"

He smiled at her, warmly. "Stuff had happened," he explained.

The girl stared at him in surprise, but her mouth remained closed. She slowly nodded as her brother walked towards her. He ruffled her hair, in a tender way.

"But it still doesn't explain why you are hunting ants down and... well, sharing a teacher with a yandere girl who, oh yeah, wants to kill you."

"You sure don't change, don't you?" he chuckled. "Well, let's just say that I realized how weak I became. I found Know and he became my teacher. He then told me about the Chimera Ants and I said I wanted to come. He told me then to participate in this."

"So she hates you because of jealousy. Makes sense," she laughed. "Anyway, may I ask you something? Why do you want strength that bad?"

There was a long silence.

"There is someone... I want to protect."

"Someone?" Hitomi's eyes widened. "Which is?"

Kurapika just gave his sister a long look, before frowning. "Hitomi," he mumbled. "Give up, please."

"Huh?" she stepped back. "Why?"

"Because I can't let you go to NGL again," he told her, and she tensed. "You could've died there."

They stayed silent for a bit.

"Sorry, but I won't," Hitomi smiled, sadly. "I've a friend there, you know."

"A friend...?"

"Yeah, Kite is there," she said, determined. "So, I won't give up... Even if I have to fight you. To save my friend."

Kurapika was speechless, but didn't change his expression. He just conjured his chains as the girl slid into a fighting stance.

"Very good," he said, raising his chained hand. "I won't give up either. I have someone to protect as well."

"And then again with that 'someone'!" she frowned. "Who is it?"

Kurapika didn't answer.

"Right, if you don't want to answer, so be it!" Hitomi yelled, before charging after him.

Then, the boy's eyes turned scarlet.

 _"The person who I want to protect... it has been always you all along, Hitomi,"_ he narrowed his eyes. _"That's why I can't lose."_

* * *

End of the chapter! Sorry for breaking the canon that bad. I didn't plan that but, given a lot of cirsumstances - like Kurapika dissapearence in all this time - I ended up doing this...

Also, I can believe it... more than 100 reviews! Oh my god, I thought I would never reach it... Thank you guys a lot! :D

 **havanatitiana** **:** So you noticed that XD Anyway, thanks for reviewing and I hope you liked this chapter :)

 **Mr. Kohen** **:** Here I updated :) Hope you liked it! Thank you a lot for leaving a review!

 **JokeLover123** **:** Yeah, you can count it as such ;) Thanks for leaving a review and I wish you had fun here!

 **E** **vil Aksara** **:** First of all, thanks for leaving a review! Anyway, sorry. Gon won't be paired with anyone because I just can't see him being romantically involved with someone, as I understand why you like Pitou. I don't dislike her either, but I just can't change the plot that much :( I really apologize. Either way, I wish you still liked this chapter :)

 **Elisablackcat** **:** I'm glad you liked it XD Thank you for reviewing and I hope you liked this update!

 **SoulXHunter:** I honestly liked your idea, and I may give it a try... even though it won't be as good as you could expect it to be... Either way, thanks for reviewing! I hope you enjoyed this chapter :D

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for paying this fanfic a visit! Hope you had fun :)

See you all later!


	31. Her Brother x His Date x His Resolution

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 31: Hitomi's Brother x Gon's Date x Killua's Resolution**

Killua, who was sitting next to an asleep Gon, glanced to the clock for the eleventh time and sighed. It was later than he would liked to.

He was worried, even though he wasn't going to admit it. Since Hitomi's sudden disappearance, she hadn't come back. Biscuit told him not to worry, that she was strong, but he just couldn't calm down.

His mind swayed again in about going out the house and search for her. Deep inside him, he knew that it would be useless. He wasn't going to find Hitomi in that huge city.

But...

Killua sighed, and reached out the door. He placed his hand on the knob and thought about opening the door or not for a bit.

 _"That idiot..."_

He made up his mind and opened the door to be close to have a heart attack. In front of him, the girl was standing with her hand stretched, like she was just about to enter there.

"Huh?" she blinked.

"Eh?" he blinked as well.

And then, Killua realized what happened. Hitomi was there, wounds everywhere, like she had been inside a fight or something like that.

"Hitomi!" Biscuit said, in relief, behind Killua. "What happened to you?"

"Well... I..." she trailed off, gazing at the floor.

"Let this for later," Killua dragged the girl inside. "Come on."

He gently pushed her into a chair and helped Biscuit a little in treating her wounds. He narrowed his eyes, seeing the girl's blank expression.

 _"Whatever happened, she is still in shock,"_ he noticed, before pressing further the cotton in her cheek.

"Ouch!" she yelped. "Injured ladies should be treated better, you barbarian!"

 _"Well, seems doing fine to me,"_ he smirked, before mocking her. "That's what you get after running to who-knows-where at your own."

The girl just glared at him.

"By the way," Biscuit asked. "What happened?"

"Well, I found Knov's student," she confessed softly. "And I fought him... and lost..."

"And he was strong? Oh, big deal," Killua said, sarcastically. "We had fight a lot of tough guys until now and I have never seen you that sc-!"

"That's not it!" she yelled. "I-I... I knew him!"

The other two just looked at her. She clenched her fists, and looked at the ground.

"He... He was Kurapika."

"What?!" Killua exclaimed. "Kurapika?!"

"Wait," Biscuit was confused. "Didn't you tell me that guy was your brother?"

"Yeah," she nodded.

But then, a chill ran through her back. They turned around to see Palm, and suddenly remembered that the girl had a huge heathered for the boy.

"He is, but they hate each other and are nothing alike," Killua lied. "You should really see their fights! There are worse than any world war!"

And Palm slowly walked away, letting the three release a long sigh.

 _"She totally bought it,"_ Hitomi sweatdropped. _"No wonder she's an Enhancer too..."_

"Anyway, Hitomi," Biscuit turned to her. "If you don't want to fight your brother, you really should fight Shoot or Knuckle. We can talk about this when Gon-"

"Don't worry, I'll fight Kurapika," her eyes shone with determination. "I'll show him I'm not the little girl I used to be."

* * *

"What happened to your face, Killua?!" Gon shouted.

"Yeah, what's with the big face-?" Hitomi joked. "Sorry, I mean, with the _long_ face."

Killua just glared at her. His face now was a mess, especially because of the huge bump that had grown up from it.

"I was training with Bisky," he explained.

"Training?" Gon blinked. "Are you sure it wasn't a lynching?"

"More like a beating..." Hitomi laughed a little more, as a tick mark appeared in his forehead.

"Anyway, _Gon,"_ Killua tried to annoy the girl a little, and managed to do so. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Yep, I feel great!"

"That's good."

Hitomi's eyebrow twitched a little as Gon laughed nervously. _"What's with the side treatment?"_ she thought

"I expected to be tired, but look!" Nen surrounded Gon's hands.

"That gorill-!" he forced himself to shut up. "That old hag's massage must have done the trick."

Hitomi raised an eyebrow at the boy's sigh of relief.

 _"Listen now,"_ her words and her wickedly smile appeared in his mind. _"If you tell anyone what happened yesterday, I'll make your face three times worse."_

And his face fell realizing that she wasn't joking, and then turned serious again. Hitomi just stared at him, as he just remembered yesterday's events.

 _"Now, do you know your weakness?"_

 _Killua just stared at his teacher, who had become a huge masculine-looking woman all of sudden. A bit of blood ran through the cut on his cheek, but he just focused in her form, still panting._

 _"You're too quick to give up. You're too cautious about fighting," she pointed at him. "Some might say you underestimate yourself. When facing an enemy you believe to be stronger, you fight on the premise of escaping."_

 _Killua didn't argue. Deep inside himself, he was well aware that she was just right about that._

 _"I realize that this isn't your fault. It's the fault of whoever taught you to fight," Illumi's face flashed in his mind. "Habits that are burned into your body and soul aren't easy to break. But I can say one thing for sure. Somewhere down the line, you'll leave Gon and Hitomi behind to die."_

 _The boy froze there, in fright, and swore that his heart stopped beating for an instant. Leaving his friends dying... that was the last thing he wanted... but he was also aware that he would do so anytime soon._

 _"In a battle, you always assume the worst-case scenario. Even facing enemies with equal strength you worry about how strong they are, or what they might do to you," she continued. "If we're talking about a stronger enemy, there's no question. You don't bother to think how you would win. Running is your only option. That's how losers think."_

 _Killua growled softly, but didn't say anything else._

 _"Suppressing that bad habit and forcing yourself to face enemies stronger than you will take determination," she sentenced. "If you can't defeat Shoot tomorrow, you must leave Gon and Hitomi's side."_

* * *

The three of them waved after Biscuit, walking away to fight the other three. After all, today was the day.

 _"Killua's overly cautious style is the product of a smothering love. A twisted, self-serving love," Biscuit thought, looking at his back. "That just makes his habits stronger, deeper and harder to break. Without extraordinary willpower, this curse cannot be broken,"_ she then felt Palm's murderous aura behind her. _"I don't know who will be emerge victorious. Alright then... Time to run for it."_

Night was beginning to fall, and the trio stood in front of the other three. Hitomi gave her brother a fierce, determined look, who just narrowed his eyes.

"The loser..." Knuckle said.

"... hands their token to the winner," Gon completed.

In an unspoken agreement, the siblings walked left, inside the forest, meanwhile Killua and Shoot did the same right, letting Knuckle and Gon fight in the same place.

The two stood in front of each other, before Hitomi let out a small chuckle.

"Just before we start the war, fighting and everything, I want to say something," Hitomi said. "Remember the promise I made you before departing?"

 _"I promise this will the last time I say goodbye to you,"_ she told him _."Because next time we met I'll already have a pair of Scarlet Eyes."_

"Of course I do," he just replied, a little confused.

"Well, I just want to clarify I'm not a liar," she smirked, and Kurapika's eyes widened. "I already got a pair, in Greed Island."

Kurapika gave her a long, amazed, look before calming down. After a bit, an amused chuckle got out of his mouth.

"I'm surprised you got some just yet," he smiled, as Hitomi let her Nen out. "Seems like you got stronger, so I can't go easy with you."

Then Kurapika's Nen went out his body as well, surprising the girl a lot. It was way bigger, stronger than it used to be last time they met.

"Well, let's start then," Kurapika's eyes shifted to scarlet.

Hitomi stepped back, her eyes turning red as well. She walked cautiously in a parallel direction, analyzing her brother.

 _"Kurapika's a tough one,"_ she sighed. _"Meanwhile I'm here, thinking of a plan, he may be several steps ahead me... That's bad."_

All of sudden, she disappeared from his sight. She appeared behind of him and the metallic sound of her bracelet almost hit him. _Almost._

The boy reacted quickly and jumped. Using the distraction, the girl tried to kick him in the back, but the chain grabbed her leg and threw her away. Before her back could collide with a tree, Hitomi flipped in the air and put her feet on the trunk. Then, she pushed herself with it and jumped towards Kurapika.

She was fast when red-eyed, sure, but his reflexes were as well. He immediately dodged, gaining only a scratch in his cheek, before hitting right in her belly. The girl backed off a little, still looking at him in determination.

 _"She's still determined to go, but also are Knuckle and Shoot... There's no chance for Killua and Gon to win,"_ Kurapika thought, looking at her in the eye, moving slightly his index finger. " _They are the ones who can make her keep her cool... That's why I can't let her go all alone."_

"You look sick, Blondie," Hitomi's voice ran in his ears.

Then, Kurapika felt a huge pain in his head, and felt a little dizzy. He looked at his sister, who was smirking, meaning that she had to do with it.

That was her ability.

 _"But all ability have its weakness,"_ Kurapika thought. _"Well, it's time for using that."_

She ran to him to punch him and he avoided. The sound wave went across the ground but he jumped high in the air. Despite of the pain in his head, he managed to flip and wave his chain around. She easily ducked and stood behind.

Kurapika panted, resting his body on a knee, but smirking.

"What's with the smirk-?" she then noticed something. "What the hell?"

A chain with a needle-like thing in the tip was stuck in her feet. She retired it and stared at it with a frown. Aside from the blood, there was some brownish fluid dripping of it.

"You poisoned me?" she asked.

"No, it's not poison," he stood up.

She shook it off, and jumped again to attack and this time the wave of sound hit his back. He turned around and hit her instead with the chain. She fell on the ground.

 _"Man, what the hell?"_ she thought, panting. _"After using my Nen, I had never got that tired... Oh, wait. Can't it be...?"_

Her eyes widened. _Uh-oh._

"Noticed yet? That's the ability of the index finger's chain: The Poisoned Chain," he explained. "It makes Nen run out the double of quick than it should."

Hitomi panted slightly, as she leaned forward and rested her weight on her knees.

"That technique of yours is great, but seems to consume a lot of Nen," Kurapika narrowed his eyes. "My headache is nothing compared to your exhaustion. So, please Hitomi, give up. If you continue like this, you could end up losing your Nen for a week... and even for life."

"No..." she panted. "No way in hell!"

All the Nen she had left was consumed in a flash, as she disappeared from his sight and kicked him in the head, then in the back and right arm.

She then was going to punch his belly, and Kurapika looked at her, shocked.

But in the end, she lost the grip on her legs. Still surprised at it, Kurapika grabbed her before she could hit the ground.

He gasped for air, as a tiny drop of blood went out his mouth.

 _"If she managed to land that last hit, I'd be out,"_ he thought, before looking at his sleeping sister. A warm smile drew in his features. _"You've grown up before I realized."_

* * *

"Well, I guess I'll see you later," Kurapika told his sister.

"Yeah, guess so..." Hitomi mumbled, looking at the floor.

"Cheer up a little, Hitomi. You're strong."

Well, he could say that everything he wanted, but things weren't going to change. She had lost the battle, she had lost her Nen...

What could be worse?

"Yeah, your brother is right," Knuckle ruffled her hair. "You are way stronger than the other two brats."

"Eh?" Killua glared at him. "We aren't weaker than that idiot."

"Idiot? You're the idiot!" he shouted at him. "You could be only strong enough to be her minion! You should notice sometime her beautiful strength and-!"

Kurapika's cold glare was all it took to shut him off for good.

 _"Oh, right, now I remember... He is her brother..."_ Knuckle sweatdropped. _"That's really bad... Kurapika from all people!"_

Hitomi raised an eyebrow to the older man before sighing.

"Well, like I was saying, take care," she told her brother.

"Yeah, you too," he replied.

Gon looked like he was about to cry all of sudden, and his gaze got struck in the floor. Kurapika's eyes went out Hitomi and looked at him.

"Gon..." he said, sadly.

"Kurapika... Knuckle..." he then looked at them. "Promise me! You have to... You have to save Kite!"

Knuckle nodded.

"Got it, I promise we'll bring him back," he said.

"We'll bring him back to you, so don't worry, Gon," Kurapika agreed.

And like that, the three got inside NGL. Gon looked at the sky, meanwhile the other two started to walk away the place.

"Killua... Hitomi..." he mumbled, making the two face him. "I'm weak. I never knew... how frustrating... weakness could be!"

Hitomi looked at his tears, but couldn't say anything. She too, was tired of being that weak.

 _"If you can't defeat Shoot tomorrow, you must leave Gon and Hitomi's side,"_ the words echoed in Killua's mind.

The girl looked at the other boy and sighed, without knowing what to do. He, too, was crying. But in silence.

 _"I was that weak... that I ran away."_

Once on the truck, the three sat down in silence. Killua saw Gon resting his face in his arms, possibly crying in silence.

 _"Hitomi, Gon... For the time that you can't use Nen, I'll protect you both. I'll do whatever it takes!"_

Then, he gazed at Hitomi. She went towards Gon and told him something, maybe trying to cheer him up, and smiling warmly. Even though he knew it wasn't for him, it hit him directly on his chest.

But, he had already made his mind.

 _"After that, it's goodbye."_

* * *

"Hey, don't you feel this place... a little gloomier than before?" Hitomi asked.

The three of them were standing now in front of the hotel in where they were staying before, and Palm's murderous aura was all around the place. The sight of it immediately remembered Hitomi of a haunted house.

 _"Before I worry about enemies, I have to protect them from Palm..."_ Killua frowned. _"Or just Gon, more likely..."_

Slowly, Gon opened the door. The dark aura hit them directly, as they stared at the frightening scene. Palm was sitting in the middle, Gon-faced plushies everywhere. Hitomi grimaced, when she noticed her stabbing it with her kitchen knife.

And the three froze, as the young woman directed her eyes at them.

"You must take responsibility," she stood up, as her knife shone in a creepy way. "You promised to take me to NGL... You said you'd swallow a thousand needles if you broke that promise."

 _"Rest in peace, Gon,"_ Hitomi thought, solemnly shaking her head.

"Uh-huh, I'm sorry," Gon said, seriously.

"I don't want an apology…" she replied. "But there's no point in having you swallow a thousand needles."

"So what can I do to make up for it?"

"Let's see..." she started to think. "You must... do any one thing I say."

"Hey!" Killua jumped in the conversation, angrily. "Right now, do you know how Gon feels-?"

"Okay, I agree!" Gon cut him off.

His two friends looked in worry at Gon, before directing their gaze to Palm. Hitomi narrowed her eyes, waiting for her friend's death sentence.

"Go out with me," Killua and Hitomi nearly died there. "Go out with me..."

"Eh?" that was Killua reaction.

"Okay."

"Huh?!"

Hitomi facepalmed. "Do you actually know what are you getting into?" she sighed.

"Yeah," he nodded. "But I did say I'd do anything."

"Seriously, you...!" Hitomi's eyebrow twitched.

Killua, on the other hand, turned to Palm. "And you have no problem playing dirty like this?!" he shouted at her.

"This is none of your business. It's our problem," she said, seriously. All of sudden, she placed a hand over her chest and blushed under her black hair. "It's up to the two of us."

And then, Gon's friends stepped back in fright.

"You should stay away from her, Gon," Killua whispered to him.

"Definitely," Hitomi agreed. "And if you want to live, just run for it."

"Don't interrupt us!" Palm shouted. "This is something the two of us must decide alone!"

"You just want an excuse to say that!"

That's when Hitomi started looking around and noticed something... Biscuit wasn't there like she always was. She growled softly.

 _"She ran away after all... that old hag..."_ she sighed.

"Just be quiet," Palm looked dead serious. "We are going to go out... There's somewhere I really want to go..."

"Oh, sorry," Gon apologized.

Palm was confused about his reaction.

"I can't go out today."

"Eh?"

"Oh," Hitomi whispered to Killua. "He is dead now."

"Today, I have to train with Killua and Hitomi," Gon explained.

"Correction," Hitomi facepalmed. _"We_ are dead now."

Gon, on the other hand, didn't notice the creepy aura on her. He just smiled widely and brightly as always.

"I know! You can train with us, Palm!"

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Palm's knife got closer to the boy, but he didn't seem to notice. "Didn't you say we'd go out?" Gon nodded. "Then, why are they tagging along?! And why would we train?! Are you toying with me?! This will be a date! Our first date! The first date for us! The. First. Date!"

"But it isn't a date," that was Gon's answer. That took Palm aback. "We can have a proper date later. Since is our first date, like you said."

The girl looked shy all of sudden, as she started to play nervously with her knife.

"Wow..." Killua mumbled. "The word 'date' keeps popping up..."

"So true..." Hitomi just blinked.

"And I need time to prepare for it, too," Gon continued explaining his actions at Palm.

"Prepare? Prepare for what?"

Gon grinned. "That's a se-cre-t~!" he said. "You get to find out tomorrow."

"Oh... In that case, it's fine," she dropped her knife and then smiled. "If you'd explained first, I wouldn't have been so angry."

Hitomi and Killua just sweatdropped, as their continued to watch a shy Palm poking tenderly Gon's forehead.

"Yep, definitely a yandere," the girl mumbled, and Killua gave her a long look.

 _"And manga's references keeps popping out of her mouth,"_ he sighed.

* * *

 _"Holy Chain,"_ Kurapika's eyes turned scarlet.

He still couldn't believe the situation in which he was in. The King had been born way earlier than he should have, leaving the Queen in a critical state. Because of that, a condor ant called Colt asked the Hunters' help, to save her.

Now there was he, in front of a dying Chimera Ant Queen and helping a couple medics to heal her. But he knew, and was sure that she did too, that his Nen wasn't that strong. It was a matter of time until she finally passed away.

"Can you use my organs?" Colt offered. "You can have all my blood as well!"

They all tensed, including Kurapika, who was giving his best to cure the ant. He had to admit it, though. That ant was different from all the others who ran away to follow the King. His loyalty was something worth to praise.

"Unfortunately, it won't work," the medic replied. "Chimera Ants from different generations are completely different organisms. But the sentiment is appreciated. We'll do our best, so pray... That, miraculously, all the artificial organs will function."

The medics started operating the ant, meanwhile Kurapika kept doing his work. He was getting exhausted, and the worst part was that it didn't seem to take effect on her.

But...

"Are you okay, Kurapika?" Knuckle asked his partner, bending a little next to him. "You look terrible."

"I'm fine. It's just that apparently healing an ant with Nen is more difficult that a human," he smiled faintly, as he wiped away the sweat from his forehead. "And her bad condition affects me too."

The blond boy looked at the chain and narrowed his eyes slightly. It was just that, deep inside himself, he felt that he was actually healing something, but he just couldn't put his finger on it. Just looking at her face, he could tell that he wasn't doing a great job.

Then, Colt suddenly moved closer to the Queen, like he was telling him something.

"What's that?" Morel asked.

"It's telepathy?" Kurapika asked as well.

"Yes," the octopus-like ant next to her replied. "The Queen cannot speak as we do."

"Can you tell us what she's saying?" the medic asked, and the ant nodded. "Perhaps she has a hint for saving her life."

The Queen weakly turned her head to Colt. _"My son... Is my son all right? Did he have any defects?"_ she asked him.

The other ant looked hurt for a little, before faking a smile. _"You have nothing to worry about,"_ he chose to lie. " _He's perfectly healthy, and right now, he's taken the Royal Guard to search to help you."_

The one telling the conversation shook his head after saying that. "The truth is that, after he killed and ate Squadron Leaders, he left in search of a new territory. I doubt he'll return."

"He ate them?!" Knuckle was shocked.

"The King has no concern for the Queen's health?" Kurapika asked, feeling a little angry. "For his own mother?"

"Not at all."

The boy looked down, fists clenching and unclenching. The memory of his parents and the happy moments he had with all his family together flashed in his mind. Kurapika himself, he would do anything just to see his parents' smiles again. To have them in front of him again. To hug them again...

And the thought of someone, either ant or human, letting their mother die like that made him sick.

 _"Then, the King is safe?"_ the Queen asked Colt.

 _"Yes,"_ he answered.

 _"That's wonderful,"_ she said, and then remembered something. _"Oh, no. Send the King off at once. There is no time to waste on my well-being... My son has the potential to rule the world. He was born too early, so I was very worried. However, it appears... I have fulfilled my duty... That was all I wanted."_

 _"What are you saying?!"_ Colt's eyes watered. _"You are our guiding light. Without you, the rest of us will lose our way and perish."_

 _"I know my body better than anyone else... I will not last much longer."_

Kurapika and the lead medic sighed. They both knew she was right.

 _"However, I have no regrets,"_ she continued.

"I beg you... Please live!" Colt shouted, before turning to the medics. "Use my body! Please! Give a shot! Until you try, you don't know it won't work!"

"Listen..." the medic sighed. "You must listen to what the Queen has to say."

Colt was taken aback.

 _"I have one last request... I thought of a name... for my son... For the King..."_ the Queen said, weakly. She stretched her hand to the light. "Meruem... It means the light that illuminates all... Deliver my message to him... My beloved son..."

The condor wanted to take the Queen's hand but it fell limply at her side before he could do something. At his mother's death, the ant cried. It triggered even more his memories of when he was human, when he couldn't protect his little sister.

Knuckle tried to hold down his tears, at the same time that Shoot looked at his feet. Kurapika gritted his teeth.

He didn't manage to save anyone. It made him feel kind of useless.

The boy was about to retire his Holy Chain, when he noticed something more. Just below the cross he had attracted at the end of the chain, something was moving up and down, like breathing.

"Something is there," Kurapika retired the chain, gaining everyone's attention.

He moved his hand, in order to took it off from it. However, Colt placed a hand over his arm, silently pleading him to not do so.

"Please, don't touch it," he looked at it. "I will... I will remove it."

He put his hands inside her belly and removed something. All people there gasped at the sight of what was in his hands.

There was a tiny baby, as big as a fingernail. It looked that fragile that it looked like that it could broke if you looked at it for long time.

And then, its loud cry echoed in all the room.

"It's a girl," Kurapika told the stunned ant, with a tiny smile.

Colt's tears rolled down his cheeks. "I shall protect this child..." he declared. "I swear it! This time, I won't fail..."

Morel, on the other hand, pointed at him with his pipe, tears threatening to escape from his eyes. Colt looked at the Hunter, waiting for him to talk.

"Colt, can you promise me that you and that child will never eat humans?" he asked. "If you can't make me that promise, you should get out my sight immediately. But if you're willing to give your word..." he pointed at himself. "No one will ever lay a finger on you, not as long as I'm around. You have my promise!"

The ant just looked at him for a long time, while Knuckle chuckled a little.

"It isn't a big deal," he sobbed a bit, still grinning. "I inherited my soft nature from my master."

Kurapika hid his eyes behind his bangs, and stood up abruptly. He turned around.

"I should be going," he declared. He wanted to walk, when Shoot placed his hand over his shoulder.

"Take it easy," he told him. "You had used a lot of Nen."

"I _wasted_ it," he corrected, angrily. "I couldn't save her."

"But-"

"I was just useless!" he snapped. "And thanks to me, someone who trusted me lost his family!"

Knov, on the other hand, sighed. Calmly as always, he made his way to his student, who stubbornly refused to make eye-contact.

"Kurapika, you are not like this," he said. "You're acting like a child."

"And what do you want me to do?" he replied, a little rudely. "I can not just pretend I'm happy over a fact like this. Colt lost his mother, and I couldn't help him. I was no use."

"Don't you see?" he smirked. "You saved a life. It wasn't the Queen's, but it lived either way."

He looked at the way Knov was looking and blinked. His master was looking at Colt's hand, which was wrapping the little newborn.

"You still don't get it? I can tell she got damaged greatly as well when the King was born. Even you can tell you were healing something, right?" Kurapika's eyes widened. "Well, you were healing the King's twin. If it wasn't for your powers, she would be dead now."

He just stared at the newborn girl, amazed for a bit. When he finally realized what was happening, a gentle but genuine smile made its appearance on his lips.

And it disappeared when someone ruffled his hair, annoying him a lot. He looked at Knuckle, who was grinning at him.

"Cheer up, will you?" he told him. "We too have a promise to fulfill, the one we made Gon, right?"

"Yes," he nodded with a smirk. "Let's start looking for Kite then."

* * *

Hitomi sighed in annoyment, before glaring daggers at the people staring at them. Staring wasn't polite after all. But, why were doing so? Oh, yeah, because they didn't expect three thirteen year old-children to lift such a heavy weight like nothing.

Big deal...

"Gon, you're amazing!" Killua commented.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Well, listening to you talk to Palm, you seemed used to this stuff," Hitomi added.

"Really?"

Killua looked at the floor, still with a question in mind. He was a little unsure if he should voice it, or not.

"I was wondering..." he finally spoke. "Have you been on a date before?"

"What are you talking about?" Hitomi chuckled. "There's no way he would-"

"Sure, I have."

That hit Killua, hard. Hitomi blinked in surprise at him, before glancing at the other boy by the corner of her eye. She snickered at the sight.

 _"Killua's man pride looks destroyed now,"_ she thought. _"But, seriously, what Gon said sure shocked me too."_

"Well, most of them were with Mito-san," he clarified.

"Oh, that makes sense..." Killua then realized what he had say. "Wait, who else was there?"

"Oh, some of the fishing boats that stopped at Whale Island were full of women, some whom only liked younger men... So I took them around the village and had them teach me things."

They just kept looking at him, with a shocked expression.

 _"Teach him things? What did-?"_ she thought. _"Wait, I think I don't wanna know."_

 _"T-That means..."_ Killua's eyebrow twitched, in shock. _"He's a grown up!"_

"Women like that were called fanatics," he smiled brightly. "Haven't you guys ever been on a date?"

"Well, there weren't a lot of boys of my age in my clan... and let alone good looking ones," Hitomi sighed. "And after then, I have been always around Kurapika and... you know. He can look girly, but he still is that cliché overprotective older brother, so..."

The boys just blinked at her, sweatdropping. Wanting to change the topic, Gon turned around to face Killua.

"How about you?" he asked.

"No, of course not," he answered, letting his weight in the floor. "I spent all my time training as an assassin. And ever since I quit, I've been with you both."

Gon seemed to think about it for a while.

"Are you serious?" Hitomi asked, with wide eyes. "I mean, you look and act sometimes like a idiotic playboy, a Ken or something like that. I thought that at least a couple of silly fangirls could drool at you."

"Was it a praise or not?" Killua sighed.

"It wasn't," she replied, with a straight expression. "Like seriously, you never liked someone? Once I had a little crush as a kid to another one, when I was like ten years old. What about you two?"

"No really," Gon shrugged.

"Neither did I," Killua looked away. "I'm not into girls..."

Hitomi gasped.

"You aren't into-! OH, GOD! I never realized you were into boys!" she almost shouted, gaining the people's stares. "No wonder you are always that close to Gon..."

Gon blinked while Killua blushed under the people's gaze.

"I'M NOT!" he yelled.

"You are asexual then?" she tilted her head, grinning.

"Geez, you are so annoying!" he turned to Gon, who was in deep thought. "Gon, say something to her!"

An idea crossed his mind.

"Oh yeah," Gon realized. "Why don't you two go out together? It would be fun!"

That was... So out of topic and...

"What was that supposed to mean?!" both kids shouted at him, angrily, and red faced.

The boy just smiled nervously and Hitomi started to scold him, embarrassed. Killua, on the other hand, released a long sigh and his eyes saddened all of sudden.

 _"I've been with them for a lot time now... And I don't want that to change..."_

Killua looked at the floor, not wanting to look at his friends for more time.

 _"Somewhere down the line, you'll leave Gon and Hitomi behind to die,_ " Biscuit told him.

His eyes narrowed, as his eyebrows knitted together. _"Damn, I'm about ready to give in..."_ he cursed in his head. _"And this was my own decision."_

The phone ringing snapped Killua of his thoughts. Gon picked up, just to heard the news from Knuckle. He said that they had found Kite, but he was in a state of manipulation or something like that. But the boy was sure that they were going to get him back.

After telling him that they were going to return after three days, he hanged up.

"Yes!" he jumped on the air, cheering.

"Didn't I tell you?" Hitomi grinned. "Kite is alive."

And the duo high fived, still being observed by Killua from behind.

 _"That's great. All that's left is to protect you both for the remaining time."_

* * *

"Mind if I ask you how the hell did you convince me to doing this?" Hitomi released a long, annoyed, sigh.

The two were sitting in a bench, looking at Gon. He was waiting for Palm.

"Don't ask," he just replied, hiding in his newspaper. "We can't take our eyes of Gon, he is defenseless."

"And, what do I have to do with this?"

"Who knows," he lied.

Hitomi released another long sigh, before taking a book out of her bag. She started to read it, without noticing Killua's concerned gaze on her.

 _"I had brought her here because I can't take my eyes out of her either,"_ he frowned. _"She is as defenseless as Gon."_

He then looked at the book and noticed something that surprised him a little.

"You are into shojo manga?" Hitomi flinched at it. "I'd never imagined."

"Shut up," she said, annoyed. "I've no more books to read, so..."

"Well, that explains a lot..."

Hitomi was about to complain about it, when they noticed something that left them dumbstruck in their spot. A cute girl with long brown hair approached Gon, who stared at her for a while before gaping in surprise.

"I didn't recognize you!" Gon exclaimed.

"Who are you?!" Killua couldn't believe it.

"Oh, god..." that was Hitomi's only reaction.

The couple started to talk for a bit more, and Hitomi then realized a gloomy aura coming from Killua, and sighed... And here she thought she had enough with Palm's one...

Either way, she noticed his hat and then the huge amount of people looking at him. She released a long sigh, before taking it off.

"What are you doing?" he asked her.

"It's awful. I wonder what were you thinking when you put it on," she then ruffled his soft hair. "Also, white hair fits you better."

Killua blinked, and so did she. When she realized how awkward that sounded, flushed in embarrassment and fixed her gaze on her book.

"Anyway," Killua then noticed the couple walking away. "We should go too."

The two - or the four, more likely - went to a lot of places. Hitomi was getting annoyed, since the thought that they were stalkers now didn't let her in peace.

As the night began to fall, they got carried to a forest, where the couple walked happily. Hidden, in the trees, they watched them.

And then, Hitomi noticed Killua tensing abruptly, making her worry a bit... Well, a lot.

"An ant, isn't it?" Hitomi asked.

"No, of course not," Killua lied. "Idi-"

"I may have lost my Nen, but I'm not useless nor idiot, Killua," the girl remarked, and he flinched at her voice.

Killua stared at her for a while, before sighing in surrender.

"Yeah, there is. Probably, a soldier ant," he nodded and Hitomi frowned. "It isn't that close, but it isn't that far either. It could be just the wind that brought it here, but..."

"But there's a chance that our paths cross, right?" Hitomi concluded. "Either way, we shouldn't tell Gon anything. He could go berserk because of Kite and get himself killed. Palm could too if we interrupted the date, and call the ant by her shrieks."

Killua glanced at her and then to the boy and sighed. _"I'll have to take care of this myself!"_ he thought, in determination.

"Keep an eye on him, Hitomi," he told her. "See you later!"

"Hey!" she called. "You can't-!"

And then, he started to run. Hitomi looked at Gon, and then over her shoulder, where the boy was running. She clenched her fists, in worry and anger.

Hitomi then started to run next to him. He noticed her and angered.

"What are you doing here?!" he shouted at her, angrily.

"You'll get yourself killed like this, idiot!" she shouted back.

"What are you talking about?! You can't use Nen!"

"True, but I can fight and use my _brain..."_ she then poked his head. "That thing that you sometimes you don't seem to have."

"Why you-!"

Then both kids noticed something and stopped quarrelling. There was something running behind them, and even Hitomi could feel his bloodlust.

After awhile, they stopped. Both of them turned around to face their enemy, who came out of the shadows.

"Oh, I thought I smelled humans..." Rammot, the ant, said. "I remember both of you. You're two of those kids from before."

They jumped in the spot, after recognizing the bird-rabbit-like ant. They then turned serious, sliding into a fighting stance.

"Where's the other kid?" Rammot asked. "Once you tell me his location, I'll give you an easy death."

"Like we were going to tell you, idiot," Hitomi replied, as her eyes turned scarlet out of anger.

"Well, it doesn't matter if you talk or not. I'll just walk around making lots of noise and swinging your severed heads," he said. "Then he'll come to me himself. Isn't that how humans are?"

Then Killua released his Nen, and Hitomi had no more choice than took a pair of daggers out of her pocket. Sure, she hadn't Nen, but she was going to fight anyway.

 _"No matter how much I could ask her, Hitomi won't run away,"_ Killua frowned. _"That's why I have to protect her as well... I'll do whatever it takes to protect them two!"_

But, when he tried to move, the same voice echoed in his mind. _"Run,"_ and he froze. He tried to fight against it, but it was just fruitless.

Hitomi just looked at his terrified face and clenched her teeth in worry. She had never seen Killua like this. It was like he was desperately trying to fight something inside him.

"Yes! That's more like it!" Rammot shouted, happily. "That terrified expression... I love it!"

"Pay attention to your opponent!" Hitomi's voice could be heard.

From the back, the girl jumped and managed to stab him in the back. He managed to grab her and threw her towards Killua.

He caught her, but she immediately freed from him and stood in front of him. He looked at her, and then at the enemy.

 _"Just... why?"_ he thought, as she went to attack the ant again. _"It was me who was supposed to protect her..."_

His body didn't obey him and stayed like that, frozen. A feeling of panic, similar of when he fighted Illumi in the Exam, took over him.

 _"If you aren't certain you can win, run,"_ it echoed like a mantra in his mind. _"When you know nothing of your opponent... run away."_

She watched Hitomi falling again, and trying to get up with huge effort.

 _"I have to protect them..."_ he tried to fight it, as the ant walked closer to her. _"I have to... protect Gon... and Hitomi... No matter what!"_

Killua ran to protect her, but since he was still wavering a bit, the attack wasn't that strong. A punch from Rammot made him fly and roll in the ground.

He looked at the ant, trembling in both fright and frustration. Hitomi frowned at the sight.

 _"Come on, Killua,"_ she thought, standing up. _"You have to fight it."_

And he was kicked again, and again. Without being able to handle it anymore, Hitomi tried to attack the rabbit, but got sent to a tree, splitting blood. She tried to stand up, but just couldn't.

 _"Run,"_ Killua flinched, as it repeated once again. _"Hurry."_

 _"No..."_ shook his head, but then it started to hurt, making him place a hand over it.

But, because of that, he got hit. Hitomi, on the other hand, tried desperately to stand up again, to help her friend.

Then, Gon and Hitomi's smiling faces flashed in the boy's mind. _"I will..."_ he was hit again. _"... protect you..."_

Hitomi's eyes flew open, as tears started to roll down Killua's cheeks. "Because..." he said. "...we're friends."

The girl stood up and leaned in the tree, trying to keep her balance.

"You're my dear friends!" he cried softly.

Rammot ears dropped at the sight. "Stop that... Don't look at me like that..." he pleaded. "I-I can't stop myself... I'll kill you. I'll kill you! I'll kill you!"

"No, you won't," Hitomi answered, as she stepped in front of him. "You'll have to kill me first."

"Hito-!" Killua was stopped by a wave of pain in his head.

Hitomi, on the other hand, just sighed. _"You can't let it win,"_ she looked at the ant, in determination.

 _"Run,"_ it repeated.

 _"Shut up!"_ he yelled in his mind.

 _"Run... Run... Run..."_

 _"I won't listen to you! Shut up!"_ he tried to move, but couldn't. _"I don't want... to lose them!"_

Rammot started to run, and Hitomi realized that, so stood still in front of the frozen Killua. She, however, turned around and looked at him. Violet eyes melt with icy blue ones.

"You need to wake up, Killua."

That eyes brought him back to reality. A wave of memories hit his mind in a flash, and he remembered all the times they had been the three together.

That was when he realized that he didn't want to lose them for real.

But, now, Hitomi was about to get killed. Because of him.

 _"Hitomi is... "_

 _"Run."_

 _"... a really..."_

 _"Run... Run."_

 _"... important..."_

 _"Run... Run... Run..."_

"A really important person to me!"

A heartbeat after, Hitomi realized that she wasn't in front of the enemy, but in Killua's arms. The boy left her in the floor, before looking at his bloody hand and chuckle softly.

"He fooled me good," he then showed a needle to Hitomi. "Illumi must have planted this inside my head."

Hitomi couldn't help, but chuckle as well.

"Well, then," she asked. "How do you feel?"

"I feel so much better now," he wiped the tears out of his face, before looking at the enemy with a grin. "I'm completely awake now. Or maybe I should say I'm liberated."

The girl grinned as well, amused at the situation. The tables had turned, and now was Rammot the one scared of the enemy.

"I have a message for the other ants," a murderous aura surrounded the young boy. "If you come anywhere near us, your lives are over."

"That's a bull-!"

Killua stepped and stood behind with the ant's head in his hand, similar of the time when he fighted Johness the Dissector a year or so ago.

"Very well," Killua spoke. "Then, don't bother."

And after that, he used his claws and crushed the skull. Hitomi sighed, before standing up, as Killua walked towards her.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"At least more than you," she replied. "Well, let's go. We have to find Gon."

Like that, the two of them started to run towards the forest. Hitomi just looked at Killua for a bit, before gazing at the ground.

"By the way..." she sighed. "Thanks."

Killua looked at her for a while, flushing in embarrassment, before looking away.

"I wasn't helping you, idiot!" he yelled. "I was helping Gon."

"Oh, really?" she gave him an 'I-don't-believe-you' look. "Then, why didn't you let me die there, then?"

"That's because..." he trailed off. "Oh, just shut up!"

The girl looked at him, before laughing softly. He, on the other hand, just glared at her, in annoyment.

"You really are a tsundere, you know."

"Now I really think that we should get mangas out of your reach," he facepalmed.

They then reached the place where Gon and Palm had been and froze when they saw nobody there. Hitomi made her way closer to the scene and picked up Gon's bag, frowning.

"Their stuff is still here," Killua commented, as he examined Palm's handbag. "Were here other ants nearby?"

"Can you sense any?" Hitomi asked, he shook his head. "Then, it's worse..."

"What do you mean?"

Hitomi narrowed her eyes, and looked at the boy.

"Palm."

* * *

Both Hitomi and Killua got shocked at the sight. Gon was surrounded by candles, writing something - which Hitomi had no intention to know about - while kneeling in the floor. Palm was standing in front of him, with the knife in her hand as always.

"What are you doing?!" Killua shouted, as soon as he got into the room.

"Eh? Can't you tell? I'm punishing him," Palm was angry. "Punishing him for toying with my feelings!"

"What the hell?" Hitomi shouted as well. "You're the one who's being unreasonable!"

"Leave us alone! This is none of your business!"

"Right back at you, stupid," Killua argued as Gon sweatdropped. "Why don't you make yourself scarce?"

Then Palm noticed something and narrowed her eyes. "Why are you two injured?" she asked.

"Huh? Oh, we were training..." Killua looked away, a little too rudely for his own sake. "Got a problem with it?"

"I'll injure you some more!"

She then waved her knife around, but the other two just stepped behind her.

"Don't bother," Killua said. "I could dodge your knife in my sleep."

"Same here," Hitomi grinned.

"I was so sure they were dead..." Palm mumbled.

She then turned angrily at them, scaring the hell out of both kids. Hitomi quickly kicked the door and started to run along Killua, who was carrying Gon under his arm.

"Catch us if you can, stupid!" Killua shouted over his shoulder, as Palm chased them.

"Just shut up and run faster, idiot!" Hitomi shouted angrily at the boy.

Happily, after a while, they ended up losing her.

"Stop, Killua, Hitomi..." Gon scolded, looking not affected about the situation at all. "You're just making her angrier."

"Huh? If we ditch her, we'll never see her again," Killua told him, still running. "We just have to call Knuckle or Kurapika and agree to meet somewhere else."

"I'm going back," he declared.

"Want die that young?!" Hitomi was shocked. "If you let your guard down, thinking she's not much of a fighter, she'll stab you in the back! And _literally!"_

"She wouldn't do that," Gon laughed at her comment.

"Huh? But-!" Killua just couldn't hide his shock. "Didn't you see her take that knife to us? Damn, you're too much!"

* * *

"Meh... Again?" Killua complained, looking at the blue robot that he had got from the chocolate. "That's the third one."

"You're lucky..." Hitomi glared at her red one. "In my case, this is the fifth."

Then, Gon took of his, and revealed a gold one. Killua's eyes sparkled with excitement, as he got a closer look of it.

"Oh! A secret one!"

"Huh?" he said, cluelessly. "Really?"

"Yeah, you can auction it on the net for a lot of money!"

Gon blinked at it, before handing it to Killua. "Then you can have it," he grinned.

"Not interested," Killua lost his excitement.

He then took the chocolate out of it and ate it, happily. Hitomi looked at him and laughed at the sight.

"In other words, you only care about the chocolate," she teased. "You, glutton."

"But, even though you said you prefered citrics, you don't mind eating as well. You eat everything," he mocked back. "Piggy."

"I prefer that than being such an old man, Whitey."

"But what about being that dumb-blonde, Dummy?"

"Brat."

"Hag."

"Geezer."

"Otaku."

"Ah?" Hitomi was confused. "Is that supposed to be an insult?"

"Of course, _idiot._ "

They glared at each other, with gritted teeth for a while. After a couple of minutes, they looked at each other at the eye and chuckled, before returning to the chocolate. Gon, on the other hand, blinked at them.

"Did something happen between you two?" he asked.

The kids looked at each other, blinking as well.

"Not really," Hitomi replied.

Then, the white haired boy stood up. He stayed in front of his friends, with a huge grin plastered in his face.

"Let's hit the gym," he proposed.

"Okay!" the other two nodded.

* * *

End of the chapter!

 **SoulXHunter:** Thanks for the review! I hope you liked this chapter :)

 **Elisablackcat:** I think you can count this as double the trouble... I think. Thanks for reviewing and I wish you had fun with this :D

 **havanatitiana:** Thank you for leaving a review :) Hope you liked it!

 **taran taran:** To answer your question, Kurapika just want to protect her sister... Sorry if it's kinda confusing. Thank you for the review and I wish you had fun in this chapter :)

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for reading! Let's hope you enjoyed it :)

See you all later!


	32. Promise x Sneaking In x Breaking Rules

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 32: A Promise x Sneaking In x Breaking The Rules**

The three kids opened the door, in where Kite was. Once inside, they just saw Shoot's small cage, floating in the middle of the room.

"Kite's in here," Shoot spoke. "He is no longer the person you once knew."

"It's okay," Gon nodded. "We'll find a way to cure him!"

Then the cage lowered and rested in the floor. Shoot then explained that it was Hotel Rafflesia, his Nen ability. He told them that he could trap there an entire body or just a part of it.

The door of the cage opened, and a mini Kite stepped out of it, his steps swaying a bit. He then returned to his full size and gave them a long look.

His eyes were cold and dull... like he was a monster.

"Kite..." Gon said, softly.

Maybe, he was the most affected out the three kids.

"Most likely, they used him to train soldiers," Knuckle told them.

"That is why he automatically attacks anyone who approaches," Kurapika informed.

Despite of that, Gon started walking slowly towards him. Hitomi tried to stop the boy from doing so, but Kurapika grabbed her arm and shook his head.

"It's okay now," Gon assured, opening his arms. "It's okay."

Immediately after, he was punched by Kite. Gon stepped back, blood pouring out the place in where he was hit.

"It's been awhile... since you punched me," he said, walking to him again. "That hurt a lot..."

And he was hit again, and again. The others just watched, as the boy continued getting punched, but getting closer anyway.

"You're going to let this beating continue?" Morel asked. "Gon can't use Nen to defend himself either, right?"

"It's okay, Gon will notice," Killua said. "Maybe he already has, and is still..."

"That idiot is allowing himself to get hit," Hitomi narrowed her eyes.

But then, after more beating, Gon dodged his attack. Without knowing what else to do, he hugged the man tightly.

"I'm sorry, Kite," Gon apologized. "It's our fault you're like this. Take a rest, we'll take it from here."

Because Hitomi had her Nen back since yesterday, she could it see it too. Over Kite's head, a puppeteer-thing appeared.

But Gon couldn't see it, he hadn't Nen like them.

"Level two. It activates when anyone touches Kite. You must be highly skilled at combat to clear this test," Kurapika explained. "We've already blocked Kite's Nen, so we can conclude that belongs to the one controlling him. So, if you touch him again, he'll attack."

Gon looked at him, his eyes watering. _"Kite... Just wait a little longer,"_ he turned around to leave. _"I'll get you back to normal soon."_

Kurapika just flinched a bit, never expecting to see his friend in such a state of rage.

"Guys," he spoke when he passed by his friends, anger burning in his eyes. "I want that one myself!"

And then, he walked out the room. A bad feeling hit Hitomi's chest, as it started to burn from inside. She couldn't help it. She was worried about the way that things were developing.

 _"Gon... Don't tell me you're going right in the avenger's path,"_ she thought, narrowing her eyes. _"Please... I nearly lost my brother there... So, don't..."_

Her brother on the other hand, just frowned at the sight of his sister, knowing exactly what was going on in her head. He suddenly felt guilty, for hurting her that much in first place.

"Killua..." Knuckle called the albino boy. "I knew something was different when I saw you. What did you guys do in the short time I saw you last?"

"We didn't do anything," Killua spoke. "Our enemies did."

* * *

Luckily, Knov and Morel let the three kids go with them to 's why all nine of them - including Palm, who was staring at Knov for a seat far away from the others - were eating in a store, close to the border of the country.

Hitomi was taking another bite of her food, when her eyes traveled to the person being shown in the television. There was the Supreme Leader of East Gorteau... Diego, she thought his name was...

Anyway, that wasn't the problem. She could clearly see strings and the same thing that Kite had over him back then, that meant that Neferpitou - the ant who fighted Kite - was controlling him as well.

It also said that in ten days, the citizen would be summoned to Peijing for a celebration of the nation's birth... Yeah, right.

"Colt believes the celebration will be used as a screening," Morel said.

"We don't know what they'll do with those found to have Nen, but ninety-nine percent of the humans there will die," Knov said. "We must stop it before that happens! Our limit is ten days."

"What's the old man up to?" Killua asked.

"He sent an e-mail saying that he's already inside East Gorteau, but I haven't heard from him since."

"Maybe he's been taken out?" Hitomi suggested.

"If he fails to contact us today, we've been told to assume as much."

Right when these words were spoken, Knov's phone started to ring. He looked at it, and his expression didn't change at all.

"Speak of the devil, it's the Chairman," he informed.

The others jumped in their spot, shocked at the revelation.

"That old man's got some sharp ears..." Morel commented, surprised.

"He already knows everything. Including the fact that you three are here," he looked at the kids, before glancing at Morel and giving him the phone. "And that Morel-san is badmouthing him."

They all read it.

 _"Divide into three groups and draw the Royal Guard away from the King._

 _The night before the celebration, the operation will begin at midnight._

 _From the sharp-eared old man."_

"Damn you, creepy geezer," Hitomi muttered under her breath.

Then, Hitomi's cell phone started to ring, and she froze. Slowly, she reached at it and opened the text, as she started to twitch in anger.

 _"Cursing people is impolite, Hitomi._

 _From the sharp-eared old man, again."_

Killua and Gon swardorpped. Kurapika shook his head, as he watched his sister grit her teeth, in irritation and rage.

"Where the hell did he get my number?" she mumbled.

She then wished that she had never asked that question. Her phone ringed again and looked at the text again. Out of annoyment, the girl banged her head against the table, gaining a look of amusement from all the people in the place.

Kurapika then took her phone and looked at it, as the kids peered over his shoulder and read it as well. Killua smirked.

 _"Because I'm the Chairman. I know it all._

 _Hohoho~_

 _From the creepy old Chairman ;)"_

* * *

Nen was leaking out Gon's body, a clear proof that the thirty days were up. The kitty that used to hang on his back disappeared, freeing the boy.

But then, Morel spoke.

"Gon... Sorry, but I'm still not convinced we should keep you around," he walked in front of him and took off his shirt. "Show me your resolve. Attack me as if I were responsible for Kite. If your attack is too weak, we'll replace you with another Hunter."

Gon's fist clenched tightly.

"You want me to attack you for real?" he asked, darkly.

"Don't insult me! If you hold back in the slightest, you're off the team!"

The boy walked towards him, as Morel released his Nen. Gon closed his eyes, as the memories of an armless Kite flashed in his mind. He opened them, and they acquired a dull brown tone.

 _"Ah, shoot,"_ Hitomi facepalmed. _"Couldn't you have thought in a slightly happier example? You're so dead now..."_

"First comes Rock..." he chanted, angrily.

Gon's Nen started to spike all over the place, charged by his own anger. Wind blew around him, showing how strong his attack was.

Kurapika opened his eyes at full capacity, looking in huge surprise at the boy. It looked like he got way stronger in the short time they had seen last. It was kind of terrifying.

But if things continued like this, he was going to kill him. He tensed at the thought.

"Gon, sto-!" the blond boy tried to stop him.

Before he could even finish his sentence, something else happened. Killua and Hitomi were right behind Gon, each one placing a hand in a shoulder.

"Gon, that's enough..." Killua spoke to the young boy.

"He passes, doesn't he, big guy?" Hitomi directed to Morel.

"Y-Yeah..." that was the man's only answer.

The other boy blinked, and then returned to his old self, relaxing slightly.

"K-Killua, Hitomi. Thank you," he then turned to Morel. "Sorry about that, Morel-san! I was really about to kill you!"

Knuckle laughed, placing a hand on Hitomi's head.

"Pretty honest, isn't he?" he asked.

"Yeah, somewhat," she looked at him, smirking. "Does it count if I say that you are awesomely annoying as being honest too?"

"At least it counts like I'm awesome in something, right?" he looked away, chuckling, red faced.

A vein popped up in Killua's forehead. _"This is getting more bizarre every moment..."_ he frowned.

Kurapika, on the other hand -not noticing Knuckle and Hitomi's conversation - blinked at the situation with the Freecss boy and released a chuckle, relaxing his body a bit. It looked like Gon would be always Gon... As long as his best friends were with him, that was it.

Morel gave him a long look as well, before starting to laugh.

"You got me... You got me good. You go crazy with the best of them."

Hitomi smirked and slapped softly at Gon in the back. He just grinned in response.

"We'll split up now. Use whatever means you deem best to fulfill your mission," he declared. "Gon, Killua and Hitomi, as you requested, you're assigned to Neferpitou. Knuckle, Shoot and Kurapika, you're on the one called Menthuthuyoupi. Knov and I will take Shaiapouf."

"Working in teams, huh?" Kurapika sighed, glancing at his partners by the corner of his eye. _"I prefer going on my own but... Oh, well."_

"What's with the long face?" Knuckle head-locked the boy, much in his dismay. "Come on, you look like you hate working with us-"

"With _you,_ more likely," he joked, deadpan as always.

"Why, you-!"

The kids sweatdropped at the scene, while Shoot just shook his head. Hitomi then smiled to herself, happy that her loner brother was making friends... in his own way.

"Well, best of luck to you," Morel completed his speech.

* * *

"NO WAY!" Killua and Hitomi yelled at same time.

Gon flinched at their sudden outburst. He still couldn't understand why they had reacted like this, nor why both of their faces were that red.

"What's wrong with it?" he replied, confused. "The three of us are friends, aren't we?"

"That has nothing with do with this, Gon," Killua replied, embarrassed. "Hitomi is a girl, remember?"

"And what?"

Hitomi released a long sigh.

"For goodness sake, don't you get it?" Hitomi said, annoyed, pointing at herself. "Do you think that a _girl_ like me would swim around boys like nothing, all _naked?"_

Killua stared at her and his blush increased. The girl noticed him watching, and she flushed as well when she realized what he was thinking about. Her teeth gritted and her eyebrow twitched.

 _ **SMACK!**_

"Don't go imagining things about me, freaking pervert!"

"Ah?!" Killua snapped. "Who would imagine _that_ about such flat-chested tomboy like you?!"

"You little-!"

"Hey, hey, you two..." Gon tried to calm them down. "It's not the time for this!"

They gave each other a small glare, before looking away. The other boy just laughed awkwardly, sweatdropping at the scene they were making.

"I don't understand what's the problem with that," Gon spoke, innocently. "I used to bath together with Mito-san and she wasn't ashamed about it."

"That's different! We are talking about your aunt, a mother-like figure for you-! Argh! It's impossible to talk about this with you!" Hitomi yelled, irritated. "Why can't I just swim with my clothes on?!"

"Because you can catch a cold," Gon grinned.

"Don't smile when we are talking over a problem like this!" she snapped.

"Calm down! Why don't we do this?" Killua tried to calm the girl down. "Gon and I go first and analyze the area. You wait five minutes and then go. We can meet there, okay?"

"Okay..." she huffed, in annoyment.

"Good then!" Gon's smile widened, as he started to take his jacket off.

"NOT IN FRONT OF ME!"

She then turned around and rested her blushing face against a tree. Gon blinked meanwhile Killua shook his head, sweatdropping.

 _"If I kept seeing for a bit more, I would be scared for life now..."_ Hitomi sighed. _"I had enough with that freaking clown in Greed Island.."_

"Well, we are off," Gon said behind her.

"Yeah, understood," she said, annoyment flowing in her voice. "Go, go."

Hitomi heard them getting in the water and waited a bit. She then turned around and found that they were gone. She spend the five minutes wrapping her belongings in a plastic bag. Who knows, something could suddenly happen in her trip, and she definitely didn't Pairo's eyes and everything else soaked with East Gorteau's water... Just to be safe.

She then undressed, put her bag on her head and some leaves for camouflage. Hitomi then got in the water and safely arrived at the other side. Quickly, she dressed up, twisted her soaked hair to dry it a little and threw her bag over her shoulder.

"Hi, there," she waved at her friends once she found them. "Well then, let's go."

They looked at her, and nodded. Like that, the three started to walk

"Sneaking in was easy," Killua said. "But the question is how to get close enough to the enemy."

"And we can't let just anyone see us, either," Gon added.

"Yeah, if we do that, we are dead," Hitomi agreed.

"This country has a powerful information regulation system that operates in secret using groups of informants," the whitehead explained.

"Informants?" Gon blinked.

Hitomi sighed, placing her hands behind her head.

"Yeah, informants, you know. People who give information to other person," she went on. "If you discover an enemy spy, you receive a reward. If you find evidence of insurgency, you receive a reward. If you stop someone from fleeing the country... Guess what? You receive a reward."

"So the people will do anything for that reward," Gon asked.

"Money isn't everything in this," she continued. "After racking up enough informant points, the entire group is promoted. But if someone provides false information or a member commits a crime, the entire group is punished."

"Carrot and stick, huh?"

"It's pretty nasty business. Family members are put in different groups," Killua added. "So if an entire group tries to escape, the other family members can be executed or imprisoned for life. If a family is caught trying to escape together, they'll be executed, no question asked."

The girl gave Gon a glance and chuckled. He was having a difficult time using his head.

"For this country's elite to live the good life, the rest of its citizens must scrape by. But the media also spreads lies. Such as that, in other countries, had the population starves by the age of ten. Foreign aid never reaches the needy. Instead, it's spent on cars, jewels, and missiles," the boy continued. "It even said that East Gorteau spends grant money developing nuclear weapons that become bargaining chips in negotiations for unprecedented foreign aid increases."

Then, he stopped when he spotted a laughing Hitomi. She then pointed at Gon. Smoke was getting out his head.

"Hey, don't overheat!" Killua shouted at him, angrily.

"I th-think I'm okay..." he scratched his cheek, nervously. "That was just so complicated… But you two sure know a lot about it."

"Complicated?" Hitomi scoffed. "Come on, I understood all of this completely when I first read about it, when I was six."

They gave her a look, speechless. _"What kind of books did she use to read?"_ they thought.

"What about you, Killua?" she asked him.

"My brother told me everything," he replied. "And he probably heard it from Grandpa."

"Your grandpa?" Gon asked.

"Yeah. Long ago, he infiltrated the country for a job. And I've seen similar information on Hunter websites. The system is likely still in use."

Then, the three noticed something, far away from the cliff in they were on, so they kneeled down to not be seen.

"There's village," Gon pointed out.

"Yeah," Killua nodded. "It's not very big."

"What do we do?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Hitomi grinned playfully. "Sneak in!"

Gon blinked at her, while Killua shook his head at her excitement. Nothing good could come from it, and it even worried him a little.

"Is that a good idea?" Gon asked.

"She's right. We need current information. Knowing what kind of clothes they wear or how to identify someone's rank will help," Killua agreed. "They may have certain practices to root out spies. The more data we have, the better."

"Well, then," Hitomi's smile widened. "I'm off-!"

"You two wait here," the boy interrupted her and then ran off to the place.

"Ah!" Hitomi pouted. "Boy..."

Gon looked at her and smiled nervously. They watched Killua got inside cautiously, spying and inspecting the place. After a bit, he made eye-contact with them and told his friends to come there.

They entered at a house, just to find out that it was completely deserted.

"Maybe everyone left for Peijing?" Gon suggested.

"Yeah, right," Hitomi kneeled in the floor and touched softly the red trail with the tips of her fingers. "That explains the blood here."

"Something happened here," Killua went towards a chair and moved it, showing a tiny crack with a spot of blood in the middle. "And someone's trying to hide it. They did a sloppy job."

Hitomi sighed and stretched herself.

"Seems like whoever did this is not a brilliant one," she pointed at the red line. "We even have a blood trail to follow here."

She started to walk, the boys closely following her. At the end, they found themselves in front of a lot of wild dogs that ran away at the sight of them. The three looked at what they had been around to.

The skeletons of the people of the village.

"So the idiot who tried to cover up the murdering scene forgot to dig the bodies deep," Hitomi sighed. "No wonder the dogs got to the bodies. I can tell that the entire village is buried here."

"What's going on here?" Gon asked.

"This is the true purpose of the national celebration. It's a pretense for entire populations of towns and cities to vanish without raising suspicion," Killua's eyes narrowed. "The selection has already begun."

Hitomi nodded, frowning, while Gon just tensed.

"In hindsight, it would be tough to summon all citizens to the capital and make the selection so quickly. This nation has a population of around five million. Clearing out one town or city at a time is more effective," he continued, as the three started walking. "In that case, their only concern would be coworkers or family members raising a fuss over the missing. But with the pretext of the national celebration, no one will find it strange that they can't contact someone. In this nation, cell phones aren't allowed, so if they believe the other party is travelling, it makes sense that they can't contact them."

"The selection will go very smoothly. The capital city, Peijing, is in the southeast corner. They only need to attack the farthest towns first and work their way east," Hitomi explained. "If each town told that the government will assign its people a time to depart, there won't be any problems regarding communication between towns."

"So, by preventing people from meeting between towns to travel together, they eliminate any cause for commotion," Gon concluded. "But, that means they have to run around the nation to attack all five million citizens."

"Well, if one percent survives, that gives them fifty thousand creepy soldiers," Hitomi shrugged. "Not a bad number, I guess."

"No, I mean before that. There are ten... No, nine days left. If you wanted to check five million people in that time, you'd need a lot of help.. Assuming that one Nen user can check ten thousand citizens in ten days, you would need... ugh..."

Gon was never good in math, and he would never be.

"Five hundred Nen users," his two friends said in union.

"Exactly!" his face brightened.

"You're getting at the fact that there can't be that many ants who can use Nen?" Killua stated, and he nodded. "I agree, but it probably isn't that hard. They don't need Nen users to check everyone."

"Huh? Why not?"

"Manipulation, remember? That puppet thing that Neferpitou used," Hitomi told him. "I think I see Killua's point. That thing maybe can be used to automate victims or like Genthru's power, can probably be used to control multiple people at once. Ordinary humans have aura, like us. So, the manipulator could force a victim's aura to concentrate in their fist. One punch alone could create an army of fifty thousand. While leaving four million, nine hundred and fifty thousand dead in the process."

Gon then tensed, and Killua gave him a look.

"Well, it isn't all bad news. If my theory is correct, causing a commotion to stop their selection will be simple," he told him, smirking. "We merely have to pop up, take out whoever is being controlled and cause quickly. Then we just encourage the people who escape to check on other towns nearby. If the Chimera Ants have sent controlled puppets rather than actual Nen users taking them down will be a cinch. We'll just run around, taking them down one after another and wreak havoc."

Gon just nodded happily while Hitomi smirked as well.

"The problem is that they'll detect us quickly," Killua turned serious again. "Once we make our move, they'll know we're here. If we want to go with the old man's plan... we should stay hidden," he stopped and looked at his friends. "What do we do?"

The boy thought over it for a bit, but Hitomi didn't. She just gave Killua a cheeky grin.

"Who cares about him? Let's do it. Rules are made to be broken," she said, while Gon nodded in determination. "Also, if the selection has already begun, we can't just stand around watching."

He looked at her, before releasing a tiny smile.

"Okay, let's do it," Gon nodded energetically at his answer. "But I'll do this alone."

"Eh?!" the black haired boy exclaimed.

Hitomi crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"No way in hell, I'm going," she told him. "It's dangerous to run around here alone."

"But-!" he shouted at her.

"No buts I don't care. I'm so going," Killua opened his mouth to answer, but she cut him off. "You know, even if you wasted your energy arguing with me over this, I would still follow you. And knocking me out isn't a good choice either. Leaving Gon all alone carrying an unconscious girl around would burden him way a lot, and it wouldn't be nice coming from you, would it?" she then grinned. "So, you have no more option than let me accompany you for good."

Killua's eyebrow twitched before he sighed in annoyment.

"Okay, whatever," he said, in surrender. "But you, Gon, are staying in hiding."

"Why?!" he complained. "It'll go better if the three-!"

"Don't forget our main mission!" he shouted at him. "Defeating that Chimera Ant. That should be your focus."

Gon looked at his feet as Neferpitou's face flashed in his mind.

"Let me handle everything else," Killua started to walk, while Hitomi's eyebrow twitched. "I'll stir things up."

 _"He's talking like I'm not here..."_ she softly growled, as she followed him together with Gon.

"And no offense, but I work more easily alone. I have more than enough with Hitomi's stubbornness," he continued, annoying the girl even more.

"Geez..." Gon pouted. "Fine, I got it."

"Really?"

The three stopped in their tracks. Killua didn't face them, and the other two exchanged looks, worried about him. Finally, he looked at the boy.

"Do you really understand?" his fists clenched. "Promise me you won't make a move! Not even if people are killed right before your eyes! Promise!"

No one talked for a bit and the atmosphere was that thick that you could cut it through with a knife. The two friends looked at Killua with puzzled expression, before he turned around.

"We'll contact you by text," he said. "Our cell phones should still work in this area."

"Killua?" Gon called the boy uncertainly.

"Sorry, it's nothing," he looked at them, with a smile in his features. "I'm just a little tense."

Hitomi raised an eyebrow. "Oh, just a little... Right," she mumbled, in disbelief. "Anyway, let's go."

* * *

"I can't help it!" Knuckle yelled, as he took a bite of a lollipop. "We're supposed to stand around, watching as people are killed?"

Kurapika was feeling the same way as him, but didn't reply.

"Are you two sleepy?!" he yelled at his partners, much in the blond's dismay. "Want me to put you to sleep, eh?!"

"Yeah, I'm agree with you but don't yell," the young boy sighed. "You'll draw ants here and, besides, it's annoying."

The man looked away, calming down a little bit before looking at Shoot. In irritation, he pressed his forehead against his, teeth gritting.

"Don't act that it's not your business!" he yelled."If they're gonna check five million citizens in ten days, simple arithmetic says that's five hundred thousand per day! Of which one percent will survive!"

Kurapika sighed in annoyment. _"Who does this guy remind me of? It was an annoying guy, but-"_ Leorio's face popped up in his mind. _"Oh, wait. Now I remember."_

"And your point is?" Shoot asked, calmly.

"That means four hundred, ninety-five thousand have already been killed! How can you be so calm?!" he turned at Kurapika. "And I'm talking to both of you!"

"Because if we lose our cool... billions could die!" Shoot replied, while the boy just nodded.

Knuckle gritted his teeth, before stepping back and sitting down again.

"Even though I personally would prefer acting now, we must stick to the plan," Kurapika's blue eyes narrowed. "And if the plan fails, nobody will survive. If we don't manage to draw the three Royal Guards away from the King, I highly doubt that the Chairman will be able to defeat him."

"Thus, we cannot let them discover our existence before the time is right," Shoot added. "If that happens, security around the King will be even further tightened. You must endure this."

A sigh was released from Kurapika's mouth as he looked at Knuckle. He could be a little reckless, but he was glad that Shoot was here to control his temper.

 _"Gon is another of this type, but luckily he listen to people and calms down..."_ he thought randomly. _"He is really different from Hitomi... she's is kind of reckless, unpredictable... and never listens to people..."_

A thought crossed his mind and he flinched unconsciously as a tiny yelp escaped from his lips. Because of that sudden action, he gained a look of confusion from both his companions.

"What's wrong, Kurapika?" Knuckle asked him. "You became pale all of sudden."

"It's nothing," he grimaced. "I just... remembered something. That's all."

The other two exchanged a look.

"Ah, I see, you are worried about Hitomi," Knuckle concluded, thinking about the girl. "Speaking of that, she is your sister, right? So-"

Kurapika's cold glare interrupted him, as he raised an eyebrow.

"Ah, my bad. Sorry, awful timing. I'll ask later..." another glare came to his direction. "... Or never again, it's alright..."

The boy looked at him for awhile more, before sighing.

 _"They must be inside here now..."_ he brought a hand to his forehead. _"Oh, please, Hitomi. For once in your life... just be quiet."_

* * *

"COME ON!" the girl yelled at the top of his lungs. "Get your asses out of here if you want to live!"

Killua smirked at her. She was taking this too seriously. Maybe too much for her own sake.

All the people looked at her shocked. Hitomi stood with Killua, crossing her arms over her chest, in front of the soldiers they had just taken off.

"Diego has been dethroned," Killua told everyone. "Brainwashed soldiers are running around, slaughtering entire villages and towns!"

"Diego has fallen?" the murmur of the people could be heard.

"Is that true?"

"But we saw the soldiers try to kill everyone."

"Don't waste your sacred time thinking about it!" Hitomi cut them off. "Save your skins, now!"

"Just leave this village and run, anywhere!" Killua said. "Warn people in other areas!"

Then, the people started to run and the kids smirked at each other, before starting to run to another direction. They had to warn other people as well.

"We have to hurry," Hitomi said. "Who knows how much time we have until the ants start to act."

"Yeah," that was Killua's only reply.

The two ran for a lot of time, trying to not be found. After a while, Killua leaned against a tree, panting, and looked at his phone.

"So," Hitomi gasped a little for air, looking at the phone. "The closest village is at two o'clock."

"And the next closest villages are at eight and ten o'clock," he nodded. "Should we skip them and head for Taba, forty kilometers away?"

Hitomi just nodded, before starting to run next to Killua. They stopped in their tracks, feeling a huge Nen wave close from where they were.

"Maybe not, then," the girl said, before they turned around and headed for another direction.

They continued to run, and they saw several soldiers walking around. Because of that, the two leaned against a wall, trying to not be seen.

"Told you so," Hitomi smirked. "The military had started to mobilize."

"Hmm... No problem. They can bring out tanks and fighter jets," Killua said, determined. "We will stop them all."

"Oh?" she smirked. "Seems you are confident. I like it."

* * *

"This is bad... I should have taken matters into my own hands," Knuckle mumbled. "As we speak, Cheetu is racing toward East Gorteau. It seems the Hunters that replaced us failed to capture him."

Kurapika sighed, remembering the cheetah ant. Days ago, they had fought him along Morel and after that contracted Hunters to kill him, meanwhile they took care of other matters. The reason that Knuckle could tell that was because he had used his Nen ability on him and APR was following him.

"Is he headed toward us?" Shoot asked him.

"No, if he continues on his current course, he'll pass far to the south," he replied.

The boy looked at the floor for a bit, and before he realized he was standing up. The two other Hunters gave him a confused look.

"You two stay here, and stick with the plan," Kurapika clenched his fists. "I'll have to kill him before something bad happens."

"Wait, Kurapika. Don't act like you're the leader, you're still too young," Knuckle said, standing up as well. "I'm going with you."

"But-" he was about to reply.

"Don't try to stop me, I'm already in bad mood," he cut him off, then turned to Shoot. "The Hunter Association has captured three hundred and nineteen Chimera Ants outside of NGL as of yesterday. But Colt confirmed that none of them were Squadron Leaders. According to him, there are eight Squadron Leaders left that would be considered aggressive. Hunters have encountered four, but they all got away. Cheetu is coming to East Gorteau for a reason. He must know the King is here."

"He's choosing to return to the King's service in order to increase his power. And if we allow more ants joining the King, we'll never be able to draw the Royal Guard away. That's why he has to be stopped," Kurapika concluded. "But, Knuckle, you are still using your ability. You should save your strength for-"

"My ability is still in effect, that's true, but I have more raw strength!" Kurapika got interrupted again, annoying him a little. Then, he directed to Shoot, who was still in silence. "Are you gonna try to stop us? Eh?! If you are, I'll fight you first!"

 _"If you only were a bit less loud..."_ Kurapika shook his head.

But instead, he just showed him a phone.

"First, we contact Morel-san and Knov-san. If worse comes to worst, they will need to replace us," he gave it to Knuckle. "I'll come with you two. This should increase the odds of capturing that ant."

Kurapika smiled slightly, in thanks, and the man grinned widely. He pressed the phone against his ear and waited, hearing the rings. After a little, they stopped.

"It's Knuckle... Something has come up," he said, and talked for a while with his master. "So, uh... Hello? Hello?"

And then he looked at his comrades, with a puzzled expression. Morel had just hung up. Kurapika shook his head, sighing.

"Looks like he's pissed off then," Shoot stated. "He's probably calling the Hunter Association right now."

"Well, we have no option," Kurapika declared. "We need to take care of this, alone."

The other two just nodded at him.

Minutes later, the three were on move to capture the ant. They stopped, as Knuckle tried to locate the cheetah. Finally, he stated that it was close.

"If he continues that way, he'll pass by ten minutes," he informed.

"You said that APR stars adding interest again in ten seconds, right?" Kurapika asked, and the two men nodded. "Good. Since he is a cheetah, probably he will arrive here after seven seconds. More than enough."

They waited for the seven seconds to come, but nothing happened. Knuckle's eyes flew opened in disbelief, as he jumped out of his spot.

"Damn, what happened?" he cursed. "At the last second, he suddenly changed direction!" he jumped down the hill. "He's down below!"

"Knuckle!" Shoot stopped him. "Don't bother. We can't catch up. Our opponent has a cheetah's speed."

Kurapika looked at the way the ant was supposed to be, in irritation. Knuckle analyzed his environment, and confirmed that he would never be able to smell them.

He wasn't supposed to know how to deal with Zetsu, so how did he discover them?

"We weren't in his sight, so he shouldn't have been able to see us..." Kurapika said, and then got surprised at his discoverment. "But... someone else then..."

"Look up!" Shoot suddenly said.

The three looked up, just to see an ant who looked like a dragonfly flying over them, seeming that he was the one who noticed them. Kurapika wanted to go after him, but realized that it wasn't the best option. He could put his partners in danger in the attack.

And then, the ant flew away.

* * *

"Diego has fallen into enemy hands!" Killua yelled, as he ran through the village along Hitomi. "If you stay in your homes, you'll be killed!"

It looked like Diego had already appeared in the TV, looking alive, because the people started to throw things their way. That irritated Hitomi a little.

"Liars!" they shouted. "Rebel scum!"

"We're the liars here?!" Hitomi shouted, pissed off, as she grabbed a vase that was about to land in her face. "We were just trying to save your freaking lives, ungrateful scum! I don't want you all crying over us in your dying breath by the hands of a scary ant!"

"It's not the time for this, Hitomi," Killua stopped her. "We'll have to give up our instigation! Our only option is to take out as many puppets and soldiers as we can!"

Killua ran away and Hitomi sighed, giving the people a last glance. "Happy dying, everyone!" she shouted, before following the boy.

They decided to go north, where the next city was. Not long after that, they found themselves being followed by air. Flying over them, there was an ant called Flutter, the flydragon one.

"Damn, my attacks can go that far," Hitomi cursed under her breath.

 _"He's way out of my yo-yo range,"_ Killua thought, before saying. "If we don't lose him or defeat him, we'll be in trouble."

They ran for a bit and found a jungle. Trying to lose him, they got inside it and hide there, panting slightly.

But he never came.

 _"Shit,"_ Hitomi thought. _"Does that mean he still can see us and he is laughing over this? It annoys me a little..."_

Then the ground started to tremble and not long after that the two realized that enemies were coming their way. Killua got out of his hiding spot just to avoid the enemy's attack and in one swing, he removed his head.

Hitomi jumped out the rock as well, and stabbed her knife in the other foe's skull before realizing that there was a bunch of them.

But in a flash, Killua killed everyone, in a cool way, just leaving the leader. Hitomi's eyebrow twitched.

 _"He's getting all the attention, huh? No fun."_

But then, the girl noticed something zooming at her side, and she jumped back. Flying over her head, there were a lot of insects, doing nothing than watching them.

 _"That's why he can see us!"_ she realized. _"We have to stop him now!"_

She turned around and faced Killua.

"Killua! Go for the leader!" Hitomi shouted, before quickly starting to climb the tree. "Catch you later."

"Got it," he nodded. "Just don't die!"

And then he ran away. She didn't say anything, but a tick mark appeared in her head.

 _"He thinks I'm going to die? Wow, he trusts me way a lot..."_

But she never reached Flutter. It seemed like fate wanted her to fight another ant first. That's when Hitomi realized how much she hated that Fate-guy... if he even existed... or if he was a he...

Either way, she hated it. Nothing more, nothing else.

* * *

End of this chapter!

First of all, I would like to say that - again - I won't be publishing anything until next week. You see, school is in the way and is going to kill me soon :( Sorry...

 **taran taran:** Thanks for reviewing! Hope you liked this chapter :D

 **havanatitana:** Thank you for reviewing too :) I wish you had fun here!

 **Another Cosmology** **:** You're right, it's kinda cool :D Thanks for leaving a review and I hope you liked this chapter!

JokeLover123: I'm happy you liked that killutomi part:) Thanks for reviewing and hope you had fun here!

 **SoulXHunter:** You don't know how glad I'm about it! Honestly, I always found this arc kind of difficult, and I was afraid that it would became really boring... Thanks for leaving a review and hope you liked this update :D

 **Silent Readers Out There:** Thanks for paying a visit! Have fun XD

See you all later!


	33. Out of Blood x Tears of Grief x Feelings

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 33: Running out of Blood x Tears of Grief? x True Feelings!**

Hitomi backed off and stood in the top of a tree, looking at the enemy. This time, she had to fight a huge falcon, and he was damned fast.

 _"It's not a surprise, though,"_ she sighed. _"Falcons are the fastest in air... And I have no opportunity to lose him either... They have an excellent sight..."_

Then the enemy zoomed towards Hitomi, and she tried to kick him, but he dodged and rose back up into the air. He did so again, and she tried to punch him. The falcon then just chose to grab her hand and hit her in the jaw, sending her flying.

She got a hold in a branch, holding her sore spot.3

"You know is rude to hit a girl in the face, right, Falcon-boy?!" she shouted.

'Falcon-boy' just raised an eyebrow at her.

"Not much a talker, huh?" she mumbled, before shouting at him, who was still flying in the sky. "Come on! Will you stay in the air for much longer? I've got a fight to win yet!"

 _ **BANG!**_

Her head snapped at the direction of the sound, but didn't see anything. It was like someone, somewhere in the jungle, had just shoot something. She narrowed her eyes.

 _"Let's hope Killua wasn't the target..."_

She noticed her foe flying her way and she immediately avoided it and climbed the tree again to see him more clearly.

"Got it, got it..." Hitomi scratched the back of her head. "Don't be that angry..."

The ant rose up in the sky again and started to spin quickly, until there was a huge cyclone around his body. Hitomi cursed again, before jumping out the way. It barely touched her, but the wind was that strong to send her flying away.

She stood meters behind, in the top of another tree, gasping for air. She growled slightly when she realized that she didn't even manage to land a hit on him in the whole battle.

That wasn't good.

 _ **BANG!**_

It sure startled her, but this time she didn't take her gaze out of the bird. She tried to shake out that bad feeling, but failed in doing so. She had the hunch... no. She was _sure_ that the person in danger was Killua.

Her eyes suddenly sifted into a cold red.

She had to end this as fast as possible.

 _"All tornado has a weak point... its center."_

'Falcon-boy' raised up in the air, until he was in front of the sun. It was that bright that Hitomi couldn't see anything. She however managed to step back, avoiding the tornado and gracefully landing in her feet.

 _"Guess that I can't depend only in my sight... But I can try that new thing,"_ she closed her eyes. _"Sorry for the copyright issues, Bat-san."_

Nen leaked out her body and she released a long sigh. Her mouth opened and seemed to shout, but the ant never heard anything.

She then smirked, slowly putting a hand on her pocket.

The falcon continued flying towards her, but got shocked at what happened. In a split of second, the girl had her eyes opened and, when he realized what was happening, he had a dagger struck in his face.

Hitomi withdrew it and jumped back, watching the ant fall into the jungle, to not be seen again. She gave the dark, bottomless place, before sighing.

She had already lost Flutter, so there was another priority now which was find her friend. She looked up at the place filled by trees, with no trace of him.

Hitomi had to find him. Where the hell was he?

She had to calm down. She need to cold her head.

"Just keep quiet, Hitomi. Quiet," she told herself quietly, closing her eyes. "Rushed actions won't lead you into anything."

 _ **BANG!**_

She then forced herself to remain quiet. Hitomi inhaled and exhaled softly, doing her best for, once in her life, not rush into actions that she could regret.

Lives were in stake, after all.

 _ **BANG!**_

She opened her eyes and looked at the way in which she had listen the sound coming from, but still couldn't see anything. Hitomi took a long breath and her eyelids dropped once again. Her Nen got out her body one more time.

The girl shouted as loud as her lungs allowed her to, but in a way she had never did before. Even Hitomi couldn't hear herself, since that sound wasn't audible for humans.

 _"I can see!"_ she shouted in excitement in her head.

The pictures flashed in her head. Somewhere, far away from her, there was a man with a gun. An ant, more likely. She was sure now, that was Killua's enemy.

After realizing that, she started to run.

 _"Wow, I could've never believe I could generate ultrasound in my life, and let alone using echolocation!"_ she grinned, proudly at herself. _"I kinda feel like a bat but... Oh, well. Who cares? I'm just awsome."_

In a couple of seconds, she found where the sniper was, just to learn that Killua arrived at the same time, at the same place. They quickly glanced at each other, and she grimaced in silence at the sight of him. He was bleeding from a lot of places, and badly.

However, she shook it off. The two just kept in silence, running after the ant. He then stopped right in front of some kind of cave.

"This is a trap," he told them, jumping down inside. "You still wanna come?"

Hitomi watched in amusement as Killua jumped in his back.

"Couldn't care less," he said, icily, before stabbing his nail in his head. "Die."

Then tentacles got out the man's head, wrapping around the boy. Hitomi instantly jumped inside and freed him with her knife, seeing that his intention was to drag him into an underground lake.

They both used a slice of his tentacles, which got stuck in the wall, to hold themselves. The creature hold in the rocks as well and directed his gun at them.

"Bastards!" he shouted. "How dare you chop off my precious legs?!"

"Oh, these were legs?" Hitomi joked. "I thought they were just tentacles."

"Anyway," Killua frowned. "Aren't you an octopus?"

"Don't call me an octopus!" he yelled, angrily.

Hitomi raised an eyebrow.

"Then how the hell do you want to be called?" she asked, annoyed. "You look like an octopus to me."

"I'm Ikalgo! Just Ikalgo!"

The girl eyed him in curiosity. She would try to remember his name, but nothing was sure. Octopus was fitter for him, she thought. Oh, well.

He then shot at the air, and flew away. "See ya," he shouted.

But then Killua was quick enough to grab the gun with his hand and stick into another stalactite. Hitomi smiled slightly. It looked like the boy didn't need her help after all.

She got closer to him, to see the scene.

"Yo," Killua waved. "We meet again."

"So we do... Long time, no see! You know?"

Hitomi just narrowed her eyes. The octopus was talking way a lot, like he wasn't in a hurry... or worse, like he was trying to buy time.

Her eyes then opened. Maybe, just maybe, there were more ants there.

"Can I ask you something?" the boy continued.

"Sure, go ahead!"

"Why didn't you dive underwater to escape? You should have an advantage in the water. Don't tell me you can't swim."

The girl just looked at the blood under his sliced tentacles and then at the water at her feet. The carnivorous fishes were surrounding the corpse of the man that Ikalgo had used as a host that time.

"Blood," she mumbled. "They go berserk because of blood, and you'd end up dying here."

She then realized it. The place, the ants hiding, her hunch, everything. She had been right, there actually were more ants than Ikalgo, Flutter and the fishes... and they were right below her feet.

" _Well, looks like I'm the only one who is not soaked in blood..."_

And then she released a long sigh.

"Hey, Whitey... or 'Red', more likely... Just don't follow me," she said, catching the boy's attention. "I'm gonna take a bath, see you later."

"Eh?" he was confused. "Wait, you are not going to-"

Hitomi let go of the tentacle in which she was holding and, before the boy could do anything, fell right in the water. He wanted to go, but remembered how bloody he was now, and the blood-thirsty fishes out there.

At least she wasn't bleeding...

 _"She will be okay,"_ he tried to convince himself. _"That idiot is kind of lazy at using her brain, but she is actually not stupid... She'll think in something."_

And then Killua turned around to face Ikalgo. He, too, had an enemy to defeat.

* * *

As soon as Hitomi's head got out the water, she took a long breath. The feeling of her lungs being filled with air made her feel alive again. She shivered slightly, it was so cold!

But then noticed something else, she wasn't in the same place anymore. In front of her, there was another cave, and she could feel a huge Nen coming from it. She got out the water and examined the entrance, wondering if she should come there or not.

 _"I can stay here all the day... Or just enter, find myself in front of a bunch of ants and shout something like 'Hey, I'm here to kill you all!'..."_ she sighed. _"Neither of the options are good."_

Then, something else happened. She felt something wrapping around her leg, and noticed it was a thread, nearly impossible to see. Hitomi tried to fight against it, but failed.

In a flash, she got pathetically dragged inside by it.

 _"Well, it's faster this way,"_ she sweatdropped.

She then managed to cut the thread with her knife, and jumped back. From the shadows, she saw three creatures walking. The three ants had features of aquatic animals, with scales covering their bodies. The only difference between them was their color: the female was a dark shade of pink, the taller man was green and the last boy was blue, who had a little quiver in his shoulder.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" the green one said. "A tiny, human girl, huh?"

She didn't say anything, she just stepped back.

"We are the Ortho Siblings," the blue one stepped in front of him.

"Oh, thanks to gods above!" she shouted, her voice oozing sarcasm. "Great, now that I know that, I can finally sleep in peace."

The blue ant looked at her for a couple of minutes, before his mouth curled into an amused smirk and looked at his siblings. They nodded and walked away.

Hitomi looked in confusion as the sister sat in a sofa and the older brother turned on a television-like device. At the sight of what - or _who,_ more likely - it was on the little screen, the girl froze.

And she swore that for a moment her heart stopped beating.

"Killua!" she shouted, and looked as the older brother threw a dart at his board.

And, in her surprise, a fish stabbed his hand.

Then, she started to run right to the ant but something stopped her, like a wall. She then looked closely and noticed that she was surrounded by threads, that somehow managed to create a force field, so she couldn't get out there.

"No one can hear you from here, not even that little friend of yours," the blue Ortho chuckled behind her. "This fight is between two people: you and me. No one more, no one less."

"Wow, you want to fight me and only me that bad? I feel touched," she smirked. "Let's begin with it then."

She could just hope that Killua could take care of himself, and not get killed by blood loss. Hitomi could do nothing for him now.

The ant's claws grew and she jumped back, trying to foretell the enemy's next movement, but was just useless. His blank, cold gaze didn't gave out any lead for her to follow.

That was bad.

"Well, if you aren't going to attack..." Ortho said. "How about me doing the first move?"

Her eyes flew opened when she realized that he was gone, so she immediately turned around to block the attack that, Hitomi supposed, was going to land in her back. However, no one was behind her.

The guy kicked her from the right, and she leaped back to stood in the net. That was when her feet started to hurt, so she jumped back into the ground.

 _"That hurt a lot,"_ she thought, looking at her burnt feet _. "And that just means that I can't even stand on it... It's worse than a wall... Great."_

Hitomi looked at her enemy with red eyes, and started to run around the field, waiting for his attack, that never came. Sick of doing nothing, she shot sound waves from the metallic clenching at him. She waited for them to do something, but he simply avoided it.

 _"He is faster than sound? Shit,"_ her fist tried to hit his face, but was grabbed by his hand. _"Double shit."_

Then, the female felt herself being lifted by the collar of her shirt. He glared icily at her, and she tried to use it at her advantage. She quietly waited until it was the time, and softly spoke.

"If you keep holding me for more time, your arm will get numb, am I wrong?"

Nothing happened and the girl frowned. An amused smirk curled in the enemy's lips, making her worry increase.

"It's useless. I'm a genius in the mental field," he threw her at the ground again. "The weak point in your ability is actually saying what's going to happen. That alone is enough for me to keep mentally strong... At least enough to realize that everything is just fake."

 _"Triple shit,"_ Hitomi flinched.

The ant tried to hit her. She narrowly dodged, using her enhanced speed. The girl started swinging in a speed that the guy only blocked, annoying Hitomi more than if he was attacking for real.

Then a mischievous idea crossed her mind. _"Well, no one is seeing me, right?"_ she smirked.

She kicked him, but not in the place where he had expected to. Since it was the most sensible area in any man - ant or not - in the world, he winced in pain and his eyes watered. The girl wasted no more time and punched him on the face, sending him on the floor.

"Wow, it did hurt?" she smiled, cheekily. "You would never be able to reproduce, so it's no problem. Is it?"

The ant stood up and just glared at her, really pissed off.

"Well, it seems like it is," she sighed, waiting for his next move.

To her surprise, he put his hand on the net, and after awhile, it started to burn until flames started to come out his hand. Hitomi wondered why he was glaring at her like that, with no signs of pain because of the fire in his hands.

"You'll pay for this!" he shouted.

Then, he put his hand on flames in the ground, as the spot started to burn. He shook his hand then, turning the fire on him off. Ortho then stretched his thumb and index finger, letting his Nen out. A tiny thread appeared between them, like it was a mini-bow.

 _"I'm doomed,"_ Hitomi realized, before eyeing Killua again. He was painted in bright colours, like a dart chart. _"And seems like he's doomed too..."_

That was when the smoke from the fire started to spread out the place, and Hitomi coughed a bit. She looked around and realized that she couldn't see anything at all. She growled a little.

Then something hit her arm. She looked at it, just to realize an arrow that had been shot at her.

 _"I had used already almost all my Nen with the Falcon-guy... so there's no chance I can use echolocation again,"_ Hitomi frowned. _"That's bad... I can't see anything..."_ she coughed a little more. _"And I'm going to run out oxygen if this continues like this... But just wondering, how does this guy breath?"_

She felt the urge to slap herself. _"That's bad... I can't lose focus,"_ another arrow pierced her shoulder. _"Not yet..."_

Hitomi tried to dodge again, trying still to be in her feet. But she got shot anyway in her belly.

 _"That was smooth. He is trying to tire me with the lack of oxygen while shooting me from somewhere I don't know where it is,"_ she felt her heartbeat increasing. _"He wants to kill me in the worst way he can think of."_

Another arrow landed in her back, and she fell. She coughed a bit, thinking of the boy she was supposed to help: Killua.

 _"I need to, at least, avoid them to seeing him. He can think of something later... And I also have to tell him that they are not longer seeing him too..."_ she thought of something. It was dangerous to use more Nen, but... _"Well, since I can't think straight anymore because of the smoke... I'll do it..."_

She stood up, still wavering a bit, threatening to fall again. She let almost all her Nen out, and opened her mouth.

 **"KILLUA!** " she shouted.

The sound was that loud that even the net didn't resist and broke, dispelling all the smoke in there. It echoed in all the room, and all the siblings had to cover their ears because of the loud voice.

But the small television ended up snapping.

* * *

 _"KILLUA!"_

Killua unwittingly leaped in his feet, while taking another fish out of his bloody body. He could have sworn that, this time, it wasn't the enemy talking. That voice was one that he was able to easily recognize and, even though he would say it outloud, was glad to hear again.

It was from Hitomi.

iHe focused in the voice, trying to figure out what was happening out there. He heard a female coughing, so she supposed that the girl wasn't in top condition. Well, Killua himself wasn't either.

 _"Oh, sorry, Fish-san,"_ she seemed to talk with one of the Ortho brothers. _"I think I accidentally broke your little television.."_

 _"You little-!"_ that was the ant's voice.

Killua smirked slightly, while wiping the sweat that was forming from his forehead. That television she had mentioned was maybe the device from which they had been seeing him all this time.

 _"Hitomi is alright, and she somehow managed to do something,"_ he thought. _"At least, now I know that they can't see me."_

He got hit by another needlefish, which made him slump into the ground. He tried to got up, but another stabbed him in his right leg. Killua lost his balance and fell once again.

 _"Damn... This looks pretty bad..."_ he panted, looking at the blood pouring out his wounds. _"I've lost way too much blood. I could die here, so no point in saving what's left."_

Killua's eyes closed, as sparks electricity started to surround him.

 _"Now, then,"_ Ortho voice was heard. _"It's my final turn."_

He waited calmly for the next three strikes to come. The first hit his left ear and the second his right leg.

And his blue orbs opened, waiting for the last one.

* * *

Hitomi was thrown in the floor again by the time of the sister's cheering. The brother had just threw the last dart, and had succeed.

"I'll go check his corpse!" the sister said, cheerfully.

"I'll come with you," the older one told her, before looking at the middle brother, who right now had a feet over the human girl's body.

"I'll catch you guys later," he said, before glaring at the girl. "As soon as I deal with this little brat."

And the couple walked out the place, as Hitomi's enemy kicked her. She rolled in the floor, before looking at him fiercely.

 _"Killua has already ended with this..."_ she thought. _"No matter what happens to me, I have to kill him!"_

She then stood up and closed her eyes, hearing the brother walking towards her. With the remaining strength she had, she managed to move her lips, saying something the enemy couldn't hear.

Then, Ortho stabbed her right in the chest, and she quietly spitted blood. Then, a smirk crossed her face, making the ant freeze at the sight.

"Sorry, but was that supposed to hurt?" she asked, looking at him at the eye.

"Don't kid with me!" he shouted, slashing her chest open.

Ortho just looked at her, who grinned at him. She didn't look affected at the attack, making him lose his cool. His panic increased.

"Come on!" he struck her again and again, but not avail. Blood was dripping from her wounds, but Hitomi didn't look affected at all. "Why don't you die?! Die already! Get out my sight!"

"Then, goodbye."

Something pierced his head and he fell onto the ground. Hitomi, from his back, took her knife out of his skull and dropped into the her knees as well, exhausted.

 _"Good, how should I name it? Sweet Requiem: Ultrasound Version? No, it doesn't sound good..."_ she thought randomly. _"Come on! It's not the time to think over it!"_

She got out the floor and started to run. Hitomi then stood in front of the underground lake, looked at herself and realized that she was bleeding badly now.

The girl then facepalmed. How the hell was she supposed to get out there now?!

* * *

The two siblings got out the water, just to see the boy lying in the ground, with a fish stabbed in his forehead.

"You hit him right in the forehead," the sister commented.

The brother turned around and talked with Flutter for a bit, telling that they've taken out the fist target and that the other one was about to die soon by the hands of the other Ortho. The flydragon-like ant then promised to convince Leol, his boss, to promote them.

"Great! We can be assistant squadron leaders now!" they high-fived each other. "Yay!"

But, a heartbeat later, the story was different. The two found themselves having their heads severed, because of the boy that was supposed to be dead.

After that, he fell into the ground again.

"H-How?" the male head shouted. "How can you be alive with a dart sticking out of your brain?!"

The boy sat up and took the fish out of his head. He then showed them that, instead of having a sharp end, it had attracted a octopus' suction cup.

"No way. How did you manage that trick?" he was shocked. "No, wait... My... darts were perfect! It's absolutely impossible to stop them!"

"Yeah, I didn't stop it. I just grabbed it, the moment it materialized at my head. From what you guys were saying, I could tell that Hitomi broke the thing in which you were seeing me," he told them. "Because of that, I had plenty of time to switch out the needle for a suction cup."

"H-Hold on... No human has reflexes fast enough to catch a dart!"

"Well, it wouldn't have been possible had I not known where it would appear," he explained, hiding the fact that he was just using Nen. "But I knew exactly where and when the last dart would hit."

The two ants would have jumped in their spot if they had legs of their own, at that sentence.

"The final dart must hit the board's outer ring per double out rules. And you were playing an 01-501 game. You start with 501 points, and the goal is to reach 0. These rules are used in professional competition."

"I n-never told you what rules I was using!" the male ant freaked out.

"As soon as I knew you were playing darts, my suspicions were confirmed. Remember how your first dart hit double 4?" he remembered. "The game starts by hitting the board's outer ring. A double in... A sign that you were confident in your skill. A skilled player would play by official rules," he closed his eyes. "Players with talent and confidence tend to seek public recognition. After that, I just had to do the math and endure the pain. I subtracted your points from 501, and waited until your score was under 40."

Then, he placed his hand in front of his forehead.

"At that point, I placed my hand in the 40-point area, my forehead. That's all it took."

"Do you have some history with darts?" the man was surprised.

"At age six, I mastered the game. I've counted down from 1,440 points," he smirked. "It was part of my early training."

And like that, the ants started arguing with each other. The boy sighed, standing up to leave the place.

 _"Or was I seven?"_ he wondered. _"Guess it doesn't matter... I talked too long. I need to hurry!"_

All of sudden, the world started spinning and, when he realized what was happening, Killua found himself looking at the rocky roof of the cave. He struggled to move, facing the floor beneath him and forcing his arms to get him up, but no avail.

 _"What? My body won't do what I tell it to..."_ he panicked. _"Wait, is this really happening?"_

Not being able to hold his own weight anymore, he fell again. He lay there, doing nothing but just stare at the huge pool of blood forming under his body.

 _"Wow... All this is my blood? It feels like I'm taking a warm bath,"_ he thought, absent-mindedly. _"Wait, this isn't the time to think about that... I should get going."_

However, when he tried to stand up once again, his body didn't move. Not even an inch. He looked at his hand, and realized that he was having troubles at seeing it. His vision was getting dizzier and dizzier as time passed by.

 _"Crap, now I feel cold... Damn... And after that last fight gave me a hint... for improving my power. Am I... going to die here?"_ his friends' faces popped up in his mind. _"Gon... Hitomi... Sorry... I wasn't any... help..."_

He didn't have any strength left, not even to keep his eyes open. Without wanting it, his eyelids started to drop and his mind started to drift somewhere... and Killua wasn't able to prevent it from happening anymore.

"Too cold..." he mumbled in a soft voice, before everything turned dark.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the cave, Hitomi was cursing and cursing, pacing around the room without an idea of what she was supposed to do. She released a long sigh, trying to deal to the urge of pulling her hair out, since she didn't want to get bald.

Suddenly, her phone started to ring. She took it off her bag and stared at it before sighing.

"What do you want, Gon? Better make this quick," she snapped at the phone.

"Eh? Are you okay?" he was worried.

"Well, if you call being almost choked up by an ant with smoke, using almost all your Nen and being bleeding while the only way you can get out the place is a lake filled with, literally, bloodthirsty fishes being is okay... Yeah, I'm perfect," Gon didn't answer at her outburst. "Well, what happens?"

"Oh, well... You see..." he mumbled. "Have you seen Killua? He doesn't answer his phone."

Her worry increased. "He doesn't?" Gon kept silent again. "Oh, god. I need to find him!"

"Wait!" the boy panicked. "Is he okay?!"

"No, he isn't. But he'll be," she assured. "I have to hang up, but I promise to call back as soon as I find him."

They stayed in silence for a while.

"I understand," he finally said. "Please, take care."

Hitomi hung up and looked at the water, frowning. There was only a way to get out of the place, and she knew it. She gripped tightly her knife and jumped in the water.

 _"Suicide time!"_ she thought, as the fishes came into her way.

Her friend crossed her mind, so she proceed to swing her weapon around. After a lot of fighting and slicing, she managed to reach the surface and immediately jumped out the water, rolling in the floor.

 _"That was close!"_ she panted. _"Good, let's find Whitey."_

She started to run and she found him pretty quickly, but that doesn't mean that she had expected the state in which he was.

Killua was lying in a pool of blood, with Ikalgo standing next to him.

"Get away from him!" she hissed, as she walked closer to the ant.

Ikalgo panicked, stepping back. His red face then paled.

"Hitomi... Don't..." Killua mumbled, weakly. "He wanted... to help me..."

"Killua..." she looked at the boy.

Not taking attention to the octopus anymore, she rushed at his friend. Quickly, but tenderly, she took him in her arms. Hitomi didn't want to move him much more, he looked too fragile... like he could to snap at any moment.

Dull sapphire eyes looked at her for a long time. Hitomi didn't realize how much time passed until he weakly opened his mouth.

"I'm glad..." he said in a whisper. "I... I wanted to... see you..."

"You sure are delirious..." her eyes watered. A soft, playful laugh escaped from his lips.

"Seems that way..."

Then, the boy's eyes closed again and he snuggled against her chest, worrying Hitomi even more. His smile, however, never got erased from his lips.

"It's warm..." Killua managed to say, faintly.

The girl looked at his face, while placing him gently in the floor. It became paler and paler, as blood continued to pour out his body, his life fading away every second it passed.

She tried to shake him awake, but it was fruitless.

He was unresponsive at her desperate calls.

He was barely breathing.

"Killua... Come on!" she shouted. "Killua! Don't you dare to die on me!"

At that moment, Hitomi felt useless. That was then tears started to roll down her cheeks, as she tried to wake him up again and again.

Grief consumed her completely from inside, as the memories she shared with him didn't leave her in peace. It ended up stabbing her in the heart, as impotence and sadness started to, together, burn fiercely in her chest.

 _"Looks like..."_ she smiled, bitterly. _"It wasn't just a crush..."_

And after it, she felt stupid because of realizing it just now. She cursed herself, and told herself that she was an idiot multiple times.

She panicked, shallowing the air around her but no avail. Panic filled all her mind, as she struggled to breath.

"Girl... Girl!" Ikalgo snapped her out her thoughts. "He isn't dead yet."

Finally, she calmed down a little before it could have gotten worse.

Her eyes glanced at him briefly, wanting to believe him, but unable to. The octopus looked at her, and winced.

"And please... will you stop looking at me with these red eyes?" her eyes opened at his words. "They are scaring me..."

She blinked. She had them still on?

"Anyway, I know a secret doctor!" he told her. "We can take him there. It won't take long by underground gateway!"

"You do?!" she asked, feeling somewhat relieved.

He nodded, and his head started to grown. The girl picked the boy up and sat on his head. Ikalgo then started to quickly swim in the water.

"Will he make it?" Hitomi asked, in worry.

"I don't know," he admitted. "But we have to stop the bleeding. Can you do something?"

Her mind started to run for a solution, since the bullets shot at him by Ikalgo had been dipped in some chemical to stop natural patching.

But then, something hit her mind. She remembered been looking at Killua for a lot time, with her Scarlet Eyes on.

She didn't know if it would work... but...

Hitomi hugged Killua tightly, burying his face in her chest. It had to work... if not... she wasn't going to forgive herself... never.

"Isn't that great, Killua?" she tenderly pressed her lips against his head, giving him a quick but sweet kiss. "The bleeding is stopping..."

And in her surprise, the wounds started to close. She now needed to stay awake, because she feared that if she didn't do so, they would open again. And Killua then would be as good as dead.

She wasn't going to let that happen.

* * *

Hitomi released a long sigh, glaring at the nurse from the place. She had never expected an human being to be that useless...

The only thing she had done was giving them a bed for Killua, and the _items_ to heal him. Nothing more. It was some type of ridiculous auto service-clinic she had never heard of.

Her power was slowly fading, and the boy's wounds were opening as well. She and Ikalgo had agreed that the only way to save him was stitching him up from themselves...

But...

"Hey, Ikalgo, do you know how to stitch someone up?" she asked.

He stood still for a moment.

"I was hoping you knew," he replied.

Her face fell. Her head dropped and a long sigh got out of her lips. An idea crossed her mind and she looked at her phone. She wasn't sure if it would work, but...

In the other second, she was dialing a number and pressing the phone against her ear.

"Yo! It has been a long time, old man!" she greeted as the person picked up. "What's up?"

"Huh?" he was confused for a bit. "Ah! It's the brat!" and now, the girl was pissed off. "Why are you calling me this late?"

"Well, you see, dear Leorio..." she went on. "You don't happen to have any experience... in stitching a person up, do you?"

There was a long silence, and Ikalgo just blinked at her.

"What happened there?" Leorio turned serious.

"Nothing serious. Small cuts," she lied. "Killua got hurt, and the wound just doesn't heal... And we have no doctors close... So..."

"But, is he okay?"

Hitomi glanced at him. His face was pale, and looked like the walking dead, literally...

"Yeah, perfectly okay," she grinned. "Actually, he is insulting me for calling you... as always..."

Leorio stood silent for a while, before sighing.

"First you have to sterilize the utensils and cleaning the wounds with something, so the wound doesn't get infected," he told her. "Do you have something to do so?"

"I think... let me see..."

She covered the speaker and asked the nurse for it, but she told her that she didn't have anything left.

 _"Once I heard that Killua was immune to poison... Does bacteria count as it?"_ she sighed in irritation. _"Well, it doesn't but... can't be helped."_

Hitomi then turned to the phone again. "Done," she lied again.

"Well, you can apply him something like anesthesia if the wound is too big," Leorio continued.

"No, it's just a scratch," she looked at the huge wound in his body. _"Well, it wouldn't work either way... Again, because of his poison resistance..."_

He then told her the way of stitching, and she did exactly as the older man instructed. After a while, she finished patching all of them and released a long sigh of relief.

"Now then, look at his face," she did as she was told. He still looked sick because of lack of blood. "If he is too pale, it's because of blood loss. Do you have blood somewhere close by any chance?"

"I do," she nodded looking at the only thing that the small clinic had, before lying again. "I'm always careful, looks like it was worth it."

"And you happen to know Killua's blood type?"

She gave him a long look, immediately remembering his bratty actitude.

"Well, he's really fastidious," her eyebrow twitched. "Definitely an A-type."

"Are you sure? Better ask him somehow!" he was somehow tense. "He can die if you give him the wrong one!"

"Sure," she winced and looked at Killua for a bit. There was no way she could ask him... "I'm great! He is an A-type indeed."

And then, she gave him blood, praying gods above she was right. Then, she pressed the phone against her ear again.

"Thank you a lot, Grandpa!" she teased him, and he growled.

"Yeah, yeah... whatever."

"Good, then take care!"

"Hitomi," he stopped her. "I don't know what you guys are into, but be careful. Don't get yourselves killed."

A smirk appeared in her face.

"Okay, we will. Don't worry," she assured. "Goodbye."

She then hung up and grinned at Ikalgo, Killua's face was slowly gaining color again. Hitomi stood up and stretched herself...

But she had no strength left and fell into the ground. Ikalgo jumped in his feet, but calmed down when he realized she was just asleep.

* * *

End of the chapter! Sorry, it was lame, I know.

I'd like to apologize because, from now on, my updates won't be as regular as they used to be... :( I just want to kill whoever had the brilliant idea of having final tests...

Well, that's it. I just want to burn the school into flames...

 **Another Cosmology** **:** I'm glad you liked that Kurapika is here, because I honestly thought that it would be something that would be a hassle for the readers. I also agree with you that the part when Gon snapped is awesome, but it's kind of difficult to write... I'm afraid it won't end up well... Anyway, thanks for the review and I hope you liked this chapter :D

 **havanatitiana** **:** Thanks for reviewing! I hope you liked this chapter :)

 **SoulXHunter:** Thank you for wishing me luck (for both things) because I'll really need it... Well, let's hope it ends up well. Also, thanks for leaving a review and I wish you had fun reading this update :)

 **JokeLover123** **:** Surprise, surprise XD Hitomi indeed can be kind of smart when she uses her head (although it's not that often...) Thank you for writting a review and I hope you liked this chapter!

 **Elisablackcat:** Thanks for reading! Hope you liked it :)

 **Kri:** Well, thanks for leaving me a review! I wish you had fun with this update :)

 **Silent Readers:** Thank you all for reading! Have fun :D

See you all later!


	34. Following the Plan x Closer x Pain

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( Sadly, I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 34: Following the Plan x Getting Closer x Hidden Pain**

Morel and Knov were already on move, that was why Gon had met Kurapika, Shoot and Knuckle. He went alone, because he couldn't contact his friends.

"I can't reach Killua," Gon told them, as he gave up calling him. "I guess his phone is off."

"I'm not having any luck with Hitomi either," Kurapika sighed, doing the same. His eyes narrowed as he clenched his fists.

The boy noticed Kurapika's down behavior, and grinned at him.

"She'll be fine," he assured him. "We all agreed that they would initiate all contact, so I guess we shouldn't be surprised if they don't pick up."

"Damn, then we have to wait for them to call?!" Knuckle complained.

"But didn't she tell him that she was going to call you when she finds Killua?" Shoot asked.

"She did, but maybe she didn't find him yet... or forgot to call," Gon sighed.

"Shit, where is _she?_ " Knuckle cursed again.

"You sure don't care a thing about Killua..." Shoot shook his head and Kurapika glared at him again.

Meanwhile, using his powers, Gon's new friend was watching. The chameleon-like ant was called Meleoron, and was watching the others closely.

" _Why does that guy look like he was born in the wrong decade? And the look on his face says that he's always looking for a fight..."_ he stopped analyzing Knuckle and turned to Shoot. " _The other has no eyebrows and that expression makes it clear that he trusts no one. It's not even question of whether he and I can get along. I can already see he won't believe a word I say."_

Then, Kurapika noticed something and turned at his way. The ant froze, even though he knew that was impossible for him to see him. The boy narrowed his eyes in suspicion, before talking to Gon again.

" _And this cat-eyed boy is the worst of them... He looks like a loner... and one that can kill you in five seconds if you piss him off..."_ a drop of sweat ran in his forehead. " _Gon, I'm sorry to say that my first impression is very bad! Unless I get some really good news soon, there's no way I'll be able to trust them. I guarantee it."_

Something caught Gon's eye, and he noticed a bunch of dogs walking their way. He grinned, while kneading down.

"Hey, what's all this?" he asked.

"Beats me," Knuckle replied. "Just a pack of strays, I guess."

"But they have collars..."

Kurapika chuckled. "Yeah, just a pack," he teased.

"He's been feeding all the animals left due to the selection," Shoot explained. "He's even sacrificed sleep..."

"I'm not feeding all of them!" Knuckle said, stubbornly. "I know we don't have time to waste on that, so I abandoned those that stood no chance. Some were just skin and bones, but still wouldn't take my food. Some were so loyal, they wouldn't leave their homes after I untied them... What's so bad about saving the ones that want the help?!"

A tiny tear fell into the ground.

"No one said anything bad about that," Kurapika raised an eyebrow. "So, calm down."

"You don't have to cry about it," Shoot added, shaking his head, while Gon smiled awkwardly.

"I'm n-not crying... and I'm completely calm, you fools!" he shouted, wiping his tears. "Want me to smack you both?!"

On the other hand, Meleoron's eyes watered.

" _That won't be enough to raise my opinion,"_ he thought. " _Well, he certainly is different, though."_

* * *

"I can't believe it," Hitomi complained, while resting her head on her hands, over Killua's bed. "You're telling me I actually slept for _two_ full days?!"

"Well, you used all your Nen," Ikalgo replied, flipping a page of his magazine. "You needed to rest."

"Yeah, but..." she sighed.

Hitomi then looked at Killua's sleeping face. He definitely looked way better than the last time she had seen him.

"You saved him... but nearly killed him," her face fell at Ikalgo comment. "You know, his wounds got infected. Luckily, he recovered from his fever pretty quickly because of his... uh, _unique_ immunity defense. But if he was a normal guy, he'd be dead now."

"Well, he was going to die either way," she mumbled embarrassed. "But now he is breathing, isn't he?"

"Yeah, yeah," Ikalgo's attention directed to his magazine once again.

The girl pouted, before looking at her friend again before blushing furiously. She buried her face on the blanket, remembering all she had done two days ago...

Even though it wasn't aloud, she did admit that she felt something more than just a childish liking to him... Damn, she even kissed him in his head... And touched his soft hair... Which smelled so good...

" _What the hell am I thinking?"_ she facepalmed, before looking at Killua. Her violet gaze softened.

She then smiled tenderly, she couldn't lie to herself anymore...

Hitomi felt somewhat being pulled to Killua, attracted to him. She was in love with the boy. Nothing less.

She sighed, reaching with her hand his fluffy, white hair. Softly, she started brush it, and the boy somewhat smiled. Then, he did something she had never expected...

A low, but cute purr. That was that he let out his lips.

Hitomi jerked back, withdrawing her hand instantly. She blinked, still in shock, as Ikalgo looked at her way, stunned as well.

"What was that?" he asked.

"Killua... had just... purred..." she shook her head, smirking a bit. "Well, he is such a cat... in a literally way."

"I see..." Ikalgo mumbled, before shutting up because of a soft groan.

The white headed boy snuggled against his pillow, and shut his eyes tightly because of the light coming from the windows. Killua's icy blue orbs then opened a little, staring at the white ceiling. The memories of the last time he had been awake hit his head.

He shot up from the bed, staying for a little in a sitting position.

"Oh? Are you awake?" Killua recognized Hitomi's teasing grin. "Good morning, Sleeping Beauty."

"How are you feeling?" Ikalgo asked from his other side. The boy touched his forehead and noticed it was wrapped with bandages.

"Octopus! Dummy! Where am I?" he panicked. "How long was I out?"

"Don't call me an octopus!" Ikalgo shouted, as he jumped out his chair.

"He seems fine to me..." Hitomi facepalmed, irritated. "Sadly, too fine..."

Killua just looked at them, waiting for an answer. Ikalgo sighed, before explaining the situation to him.

"This is an underground clinic for folks with roots in the underworld. You were out for two whole days," he looked at Hitomi, who raised an eyebrow. "She was out as well until a little now."

"You were?" Killua glanced at the girl and she just shrugged. Then, he realized what the octopus had just said. "Wait, two days?!" he wanted to get off the bed. "I need to get going!"

"Hey!" the ant held up his hands, to stop him. "You shouldn't more around! Your wounds will reopen."

"I have to follow through with the plan," he took the IV off his arm.

Hitomi just shook her head, chuckling a little.

"Idiot!" the octopus continued. "You were just on the verge of death! You need a few days before-"

"Not necessary," Hitomi cut him off, smirking.

The octopus gave her a confused look, but before he could even say something, a woman who worked there walked towards them.

"Oh, you two are awake?" she asked. "That's great."

"Thanks for everything you've done," Killua said. "We're checking out now."

"Not until you pay me," she raised a finger. "Your total bill comes to 1.8 million jenny... each."

The girl looked at her, annoyed. "Come on! I've been the one doing treating Killua!"

Killua looked at her and then at Ikalgo, in surprise. The octopus just nodded, affirming what she had said.

His sapphire eyes widened even more when he confirmed that as a real fact. He had never dreamed of the day that Hitomi would do something like that without braging about it. He was kind of shocked after knowing that she had practically saved his life.

It looked like he owed her quite a lot.

"And also, the only thing I did was sleeping!" she ended. "Bring down the price a little!"

"I said 1.8 million jenny each," a murderous aura surrounded the woman's face. "If you can't pay, I'll take body parts instead."

Hitomi sighed, taking her wallet out. She frowned at the sight of it, irritated.

"I have enough to cover only mine," she told him, before looking at her phone. "And the battery of my cell phone had died down... Just great."

"Don't worry, you have done more than enough," Killua's sentence sure took her out of guard, but chuckled at it. The boy turned to the nurse. "I don't have my wallet on me. I'll wire it to you when I get back."

"I'm not stupid enough to trust that you'll keep that promise," she replied. "Until you find someone to bring the money, you're staying here."

"We don't have time for that!" he snapped at her. "Give me a phone!"

She directed him to one, deciding to call Gon.

"It costs 10,000 jenny per minute," the nurse told him.

"Would you just shut up and go away?!" the kids shouted at her, both were really annoyed.

And the nurse walked away. Killua sighed, and pressed the phone against his ear.

"I'm going to call Gon," he told her.

That was when Hitomi grimaced and facepalmed. Given the circumstances, she had not managed to call Gon, whom she promised to call as soon as she found Killua. It had been two days since now.

"Hello?" Gon said from the phone.

"Hey, it's me," Killua replied in a casual way.

She just prayed that Gon would be able to be quiet about it...

"KILLUA!" the loud voice nearly left Killua deaf, but he managed to pull the phone apart of his ear.

"USE YOUR INNER VOICE!" Hitomi grabbed the phone and yelled at the boy. "WE ARE IN A HOSPITAL, FOR GOODNESS SAKE!"

"Eh?! Is Hitomi who is with you?!" Gon recognized her voice. "Why are you both in the hospital?! Are you okay?! What happened?!"

Hitomi sighed, before keeping her ear close to the phone, in order to hear the conversation as well.

"Yeah, Hitomi is with me right now," Killua replied. "We'll explain when we see you."

"Long story short, ant problems. Killua nearly died and I ran off Nen," Hitomi explained briefly. "And as I told you, we've been in the hospital."

"I see... Well, I'm glad you called," Gon smiled from the other end. "This means you're okay now, right?"

"Yeah, we'll be back soon," the boy said. "Anything happen on your side?"

"We've found a strong ally," on the other end, Gon turned around to see Mereolon and Knuckle, who were clashing their fists together. "He's bonding with Knuckle. We have a plan that could defeat the King if it goes well."

"Really?" Hitomi was curious.

"We should meet, so I can hear what you guys think."

"Okay," Killua replied. "Then, I need you to send money to a certain bank account. If you do that, we can rendezvous today."

After that, Gon promised to pay and Killua hang up. Hitomi gave the woman the money and she left to check Killua's payment. Ikalgo said something more to him about having to take it easy, but he ignored him. He took his shirt off, revealing his completely healed body.

And Hitomi smacked herself and turned around, when she found herself staring at him for too long.

"You know," Ikalgo told her, smirking. "You're drooling."

"I'm not!" she yelled at him, wiping her mouth.

Before anyone could say something else, the nurse stepped into the room.

"Okay, I confirmed receipt of the money," she told them. "You can leave. _Right now."_

And she slammed the door, leaving one of Hitomi's eyebrow twitch involuntary. Killua shook his head, as he dressed with a sleeveless shirt.

"Oh, such a warm and tearful goodbye," she mumbled.

Then, they walked to the door, Ikalgo closely following them. When they arrived at it, the ant stopped in his tracks, just looking at them blankly.

"Come on!" Hitomi shouted at him, feeling a little impatient. "What are you waiting for?"

"Let's go," Killua called as well, Ikalgo jumped in his feet. "We're gonna join our buddies. We'll introduce you."

He didn't say anything for a while. "But..." he looked at the ground.

The kids gave him a long look, before frowning slightly. Killua sighed, and looked away from him.

"Well, I won't force you," he said. "I'll just tell you this. Thank you."

"Uh, wait... Actually..." he mumbled, before speaking up. "It's okay if I come? I mean, I'm just a-"

"An ant?" Hitomi raised an eyebrow, completing the sentence. Sarcasm then echoed in her voice. "Wow, big deal. I'm a human bratty girl... Yeah, that's different."

"But..."

"What? Was I the only one who thought we were already friends?" Killua mumbled, and Ikalgo's eyes watered.

"It's... okay?"

"It isn't about what's okay," Killua sighed, opening the door. The two kids started to walk. "It's whether you're coming or not."

"I'm going!" Ikalgo started running after them. "I'm going with you!"

Then Killua stopped, facing Ikalgo with a serious expression. Hitomi stepped right behind the boy, a smirk being drawn in her face.

"I want to make something clear. The next time something like this happens, I won't bother thanking you," he explained to his tiny friend. "So if something happens, and I end up helping you, you don't need to thank me. Friends are supposed to help friends."

Hitomi just held back a laugh at his words.

"From now on, we'll be working together. So we'll be helping each other," he continued. "Supporting each other isn't a big deal. It'd be lame to thank each other for every little thing."

"And also, he's just shy," the girl grinned at him. "He's just embarrassed to thank people countless times."

"I'm not!" he argued and flushed a bit.

"Yes, you are~!" she teased, in a sing-song voice.

"No!"

"Yes~!"

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"YES, dammit!" Killua growled, irritated.

"So you are shy?" Hitomi grinned at him. "Good thing to know then~!"

"Eh-?" he then realized what he had said and facepalmed. "You know what? You should know when to shut up."

"Why? I don't have to."

"You have."

"No way."

"Yea-" Killua cut himself before starting again with that stuff and sighed in irritation. "Argh, I really hate you."

Hitomi pouted.

"Aww... but you like me, don't yo-?"

"That's _not_ the point!" he shouted, before turning to Ikalgo, who was looking at the conversation cluelessly. "So, are you going?"

The octopus-like ant started to think about it, his eyes watering even more than before in excitement.

" _Yeah, this is it,"_ tears started to roll down his cheeks. " _This is the world I wanted. The world I longed for and sought... But deep down, I thought it was beyond my reach... I'd given up on this world. I thought it wasn't meant to me..."_

"Huh?" Killua jumped in his feet, not sure of what to do. "Why are you crying?"

"Because... Because you're doing this for me!" he cried.

Hitomi grinned, at the sight of the ant wiping his tears away. Killua, on the other hand, just sighed, before kneading down in front of Ikalgo.

"I want to make one more thing clear. The world you're stepping into is far more brutal than the world of the Chimera Ants," he told him, with a serious expression. "They may seem similar, but there's a huge difference between risking a life and throwing it away."

Ikalgo didn't say anything, just looked at the boy who was standing up.

"People staring death in the face everyday don't want to hear that someone is ready to die, you know," Hitomi added.

"Yeah," Killua nodded, before looking at the ant in the eye. "Only people who maintain a daily regimen to stay in tip-top shape and can swallow just enough poison to fall short of a lethal dose, get to survive. That's how it goes."

They both then smiled at him.

"Are you ready to join us?" the boy asked.

Ikalgo then smiled widely after hearing that words.

"A foolish question. I see paradise before me," his smirk grew. "I'm going, no matter what it costs me."

* * *

"The number you have dialed is currently unavailable."

Kurapika released a long sigh, before hanging up the call. He looked at his phone for a long time and his eyes narrowed.

Two days have passed since he had news about his sister's whereabouts, but it sure had been a lot more time for him at least. The fact that surprised him even more was that Gon hadn't got any word of her either.

He arrived at the place he agreed to be, using the key that Knov gave him to enter to his place, which was created with his Nen, called Hide and Seek. What he found inside took him for surprise.

Kurapika was aware of his master's mental breakdown. As far as the boy was concerned, Knov had sneaked in the King's Palace, and managed to fulfill his quest, which was to put some portals for the operation three days after that day.

But what he ran into was far beyond his imagination. There was the man, sitting in the floor, knees against his chest and his body shaking. He froze for a minute when he raised his head to see him: there was no more than fright in his eyes.

"Master," Kurapika spoke, stepping in front of him. "How are you doing?"

Knov didn't answer his question and just hugged his legs tighter.

"What really happened?" the boy narrowed his eyes, asking slowly.

"That... That vicious aura..." he managed to say in a whisper. "One look... was all it took... to break my will..."

His student kept silent and gazed at his feet, knowing perfectly that the aura he was talking about was Neferpitou, the Royal Guard that attacked Hitomi and the others back then in NGL.

"Hitomi, your sister... Gon... Killua..." Knov spoke, making Kurapika look at him in the eye. "They must have seen that aura... and were probably even closer, actually touching it... Yet... How are they still able to face them? How can they bring themselves to fight?"

"I don't really know, but their willpower is something else... out of this world," Kurapika replied, smiling a little at himself. "You can say that, in that point of view, they are similar to Palm..."

"Palm!" Knov remembered, panicking a bit.

That was when the teen realized that reminding him of her wasn't a wise move. The reason was that she too had sneaked in the building, hiding inside to trap the King once and for all.

"Please, Palm... don't do anything foolish..." he mumbled more like to himself, before talking to the boy. "Kurapika, please, you too... don't end dead."

"I won't, I promise," Kurapika promised.

"And also... the reason I called you..." he looked at him, still a little shaken. "I want you to take my place... and help Morel with Shaiapouf. I won't be able... to go back there... anymore..."

Kurapika doubted he could be any help, but nodded anyway. He placed a hand over his teacher's shoulder and smiled warmly.

"You don't have anything to worry about," he assured him. "I'll complete your task, no matter how much it can cost me."

"T-That's the problem..." Knov frowned. "I don't... want to lose both of my students... Not you... nor Palm..."

"I assure you that I'll live," he smiled, as his sister's smile popped up in his head. "I've a promise to deal with before I die."

Then, he gave Knov the key and he motioned the boy to the exit as well as he could. Outside it, his phone rang. He picked up, just to hear Gon's voice.

"Kurapika! Hitomi has called!" his heart went calm once again. "She's with Killua, they are coming here."

"Thank to goodness," he released a long, relaxed sigh. "Thanks for informing me. I'm on my way there."

* * *

"What the hell were you thinking right there?!"

Hitomi rolled her eyes at her brother. " _Here we go again,"_ she thought, as the boy continued scolding her.

"Risking yourself like that! That was stupid!" Kurapika shouted. "You could have died there, you know! And who would you leave to tell the notice to the others? Killua? That would be horrible for him! And also-"

"Please! I'm alive and well, right? Stop nagging like an old hag, for goodness sake... and for my ears' sake to... They will start bleeding if you continue yelling that loud..."

"I'm not joking, this is serious stuff!"

Killua and Gon just looked at the scene and sweatdropped. It had been a while since they had heard the boy scolding his little sister. It sure brought them memories...

"Hey, Kurapika, just let her be for now. She's fine already," Knuckle tried to calm him down. "Besides, we haven't time for this."

"Right," he glared at the girl, who grinned, before releasing a long sigh.

Hitomi gave Knuckle a smile, in thanks and he raised a thumb at her, scratching the back of his head with a flushing face in shyness.

Killua bit his lip and huffed in annoyment.

"Huh~?" Gon whispered at him, kind of bluntly. "Someone is jealous here?"

"I'm not!" he blushed, but the other boy's teasing grin didn't wipe out his face. "Argh! You are even more annoying than her."

 _"Her?_ Oh, so you are thinking about _her_ again, eh?"

They both were silent for a while.

"Gon?"

"Yes?"

"I'm so gonna kill you."

After that, they all sat around a piece of paper, where the map of the palace was drawn. Then, they told Killua and Hitomi everything that happened when they were out. The filling in was over now, and they all were discussing about a plan.

"Using Knov-san's Apartment Complex, nine people will infiltrate the palace," Knuckle explained. "Shoot, Kurapika and me... Gon, Killua, Hitomi, Meleoron, Ikalgo and then Morel. A few seconds after us, the Chairman will enter from beyond Pitou's En."

"During that time, we must draw the Royal Guard from the King," Kurapika added. "Then, Hitomi, Gon, Killua and Ikalgo will go in first. When we suddenly appear in the midst of the palace, their immediate reaction will be..."

"To protect the King with their lives," Gon completed for him.

"They'll probably use a formation like this," Killua drew in the paper some figures, showing that the King would be in the center and the guards surrounding him.

"Wow, so easy to break," Hitomi whistled, sarcastically.

Meleoron hummed for a bit. "And that's where I come in," he pointed at himself.

They nodded, and continued to design their plan. All of them stood hours there, talking, arguing and nodding, until it was finally complete.

"Something to ask?" Hitomi asked after ending it.

"Uh, about Palm..." Gon went on. "Can we do anything to learn what's happened to her?"

"She's either dead or in hiding. If she's gotten out, she'd have contacted us," Killua replied. "Since she hasn't, that's the only explanation."

"Also, if she were captured, she'd taken her own life," Kurapika frowned. "When she left, she was prepared for that."

"If we try to check on her, it would be an insult to her resolve," Shoot completed the thought.

Gon looked a little upset after hearing that, and lowered his brown gaze to the wooden floor in which he was sitting.

"Hey, you're being too harsh!" Knuckle shouted at Shoot. "Gon's just concerned about Palm."

"And his concern is worthless," Killua said, a little rudely.

"What's that?!" he snapped, anger building inside him. "You just came back! Where do you get off?!"

Hitomi released a long sigh.

"Even though I don't like it, he's right," she spoke. "Assuming that Palm was captured alive, it would mean the enemy knows our plan. That means that we would be walking straight to the trap and our death."

"We'll be destroyed instantly," Killua added. "But instead of worrying about worst-case scenarios, what's important is that we trust Palm."

Kurapika just gave him a long, curious look. " _I think that's the first time I hear him talking about not worry about the worst-case scenario,"_ he then smiled a bit. " _He changed a lot from the last time I've seen him."_

"Well, that certainly makes sense," Meleoron held a finger up. "But Gon's point might be that, if Palm has met such a fate, we still have time to change the plan."

"Think again," Killua did the same thing. "He'll say that we have to save Palm first. But he won't offer any plans for that."

"Sadly, agree again," Hitomi sighed.

Gon's face then fell. "Y-You are right..." he mumbled.

The others sighed as well and looked at the boy, who just kept his gaze on the floor. Killua's expression didn't change though.

"I know you're worried, but once the operation starts, you'll have to forget her until we're done," the boy told his friend.

"If you're distracted for a fraction of a second, that might cause our operation to fail," Meleoron agreed.

"We still have two days... There's still time for Palm to contact us," Hitomi nodded. "But in case she doesn't, we can't leave her in her own. Why don't we send someone with the only task of search and get her out the palace?" she gave Ikalgo a quick glance, who blinked. "Someone who can pass unnoticed between ants..."

"Leave it to me," the ant then smirked.

* * *

"It's about time for us to enter Peijing," Knuckle said, slapping his hand on the paper, the night before the operation. "The enemy should have noticed Morel's distraction by now. We'll make some noise in Peijing to negate their belief that this is all the work of one man."

"At the same time, many citizens will be moving toward the palace," Kurapika continued. "If we disappear the day before the celebration, they'll believe assassins are hidden among the citizens, trying to kill the King. And their focus will be outside the palace, on the crowds."

"And that's when we enter the palace with Four-Dimensional Apartment Complex!" Hitomi grinned, excitedly, and pointed at a place in the paper. "And the King will definitely be here. Watching the selection from the third-floor throne room."

Her brother, on the other hand, gave her a long look and frowned. Little after that, he sighed.

"Well, we should split now, don't we?" Kurapika stood up, before glancing at his partners.

"What do you mean?" Knuckle grinned. "With 'us', I meant Shoot and me," he looked at the others. "You're staying with them."

"Eh?"

Hitomi blinked at him for a while. Kurapika's partner turned around to see her and smiled, taking her hand on his.

"Please, take care," he spoke.

Gon laughed nervously as Shoot shook his head, looking both Killua and Kurapika trembling slightly in anger.

"Huh?" Hitomi raised an eyebrow. "I'll be okay... I think..."

"I'd like to stay with you, but-"

He was shut up by a short, cold chuckle coming from Killua.

"Get a room if you want, but why do you keep flirting on her that openly?" the boy rested his hands on his hips. "Even in front of her older brother, for goodness sake."

"What do you mean, dumbass?!" he shouted at him.

"Exactly what I'm saying, idiot!" Killua shouted back, feeling annoyed. "I mean, how old are you, old man? You're old enough to be her grandfather."

"HUH?! Repeat that!" he yelled, in anger.

"You're old enough to be her grandfather!" he yelled back. "See? You can't even hear what I'm saying!"

"I'm just her friend, don't you get it?! F-R-I-E-N-D! Got a problem?" he said, annoying the younger one. "Oh, I think I got it. You are jealous and afraid of me taking your pretty crush out of your reach by any chance?"

They all fell silent at that sentence. Hitomi's eyes opened slightly, as she looked at Killua. The boy didn't spare her a glance, just blushed madly.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" he shouted, pointing at the girl. "I prefer even a red pepper a million times over that tomboy over there! If you want to do that dating-stuff with her, go ahead, but not in front of me! It's disgusting!"

"Yeah, right..." Knuckle gave him an 'I-don't believe-you' look while Hitomi glared at her friend, in annoyment.

After that, they finally split. Shoot looked at his companion with wonder, and he raised an eyebrow to him.

"Why did you let Kurapika go with her in first place?" he asked.

And his good mood - or what it remained of it - died down.

"We don't know how much we can lose there, you know," he explained, gazing at his feet. "Hitomi is his sister, and he needs to have as much time with her as he can... T-That's why."

"Oh," he nodded. "You're so kind. Giving up in having time with her for him."

"I'm not! And I'm not into little girls like that brat said!"

"You're crying, Knuckle."

* * *

Trying to fill themselves in about what happened the time they had not seen each other, Killua, Gon, Hitomi and Kurapika sat in the floor of the place in which they were staying along the pair of ants, who were listening despite not being able to understand everything. Either way, they tried to fill them in as well in everything they didn't know.

"The daugther of the Nostrade family lost her powers, and his father got into a bankrupt," Kurapika continued to explain. "That was when I received your call, Hitomi."

"About Kuroro?" she asked, a little unsure.

"Yes. I thought that they could be after us because all the problems we had before. I got scared of them hurting you, guys," he closed his hand, tightly. "That was when I realized how weak I was."

"What do you mean?" Gon was curious. "You were strong already, Kurapika."

"I was strong, true, but it was just based in hatred... More than power to avenge... I needed power to protect. That was why, after finally losing my job, I began to search for a master," they were shocked at his words. The boy smiled warmly. "Then, I met Knov-san and trained along Palm for a while... even though she began to hate me for unknown reasons..."

"Yeah, we're aware of that," Killua sighed, as the three sweatdropped.

"Anyway, I learned about the Chimera Ants, I decided I couldn't just keep quiet about it. I asked Knov-san to go with him a lot of times, until he agreed to put me into a test. I met Knuckle and Shoot, and they gave us the same assignment the Chairman gave you: collect the tokens," he continued. "Although it was a surprise, I'd never expected to meet you guys again in here, and let alone in a situation like this."

"Neither had us," Hitomi smirked.

And then, it was the kids' turn. They told him everything that happened since they splitted off, starting from Greed Island. After finishing the dodgeball game part, Hitomi took the vial she had got from there and gave it to Kurapika.

His eyes shifted in scarlet for a bit, but calmed down.

"They are Pairo's, isn't it?" he asked, softly. They all gasped in surprise, while Kurapika's eyes narrowed, as a thin smile was drawn in his face. "His eyes always had that particular shine in them..."

Hitomi gazed at the ground, pain shining in her eyes. He was damn too right. She then released a long sigh trying to, in vain, trying to erase these memories from her mind.

"Anyway, now that I managed to get a pair of them, it's your time to fulfill your part of the deal," she forced herself to smile at her brother. "We'll search for the ones left after defeating the King, together."

"Yeah, we will," he smiled, warmly. "I promise it."

Killua narrowed his eyes a bit, but didn't say anything. Gon, on the other hand, pouted a little in a childish way.

"That means we won't be together after this?" he asked.

"Well, yeah," she grinned a little. Killua, on the other hand, looked at the floor. "After this, is goodbye," he listened at her, as his fists clenched. "And this time for real."

The boy's teeth grittered at the thought of it, feeling a little hurt at her words. No matter how much the pain burned inside his chest, he forced himself to hide it.

Killua kept awfully quiet after that.

Gon continued to tell Kurapika about everything that happened after that, until they realized how late it was and decided to call it a day. Not long after that, they were all sleeping.

Well, almost all of them. Killua was still wide awake like an owl, blankly staring at the ceiling. After Hitomi had said that sentence, something strange had awaken in him but just wasn't able to put his finger on it.

" _Why am I thinking over it that much? It's her own life, her choice,"_ his icy blue gaze didn't leave the roof. " _If she is alright with it, so be it. I should be happy that she won't be around for more time annoying us..."_

But even he couldn't bring himself to believe his own lies.

"Oh?" he shot up and turned around at that female voice. His eyelid twitched, at the sight of Hitomi. "Is Kitten still awake?"

He didn't say anything, he wasn't in the mood to do so. Killua turned to the window, and looked outside, gaining the girl's curious gaze.

"Why are you that mad? It's because of the nickname? Don't be such a grumpy geezer," his eyebrow twitched again at her comment. "You're a cat, just admit it. You even purr sometimes."

"I don't purr!" he hissed angrily.

"See? You even hiss like a cat," she chuckled. "Sometimes, I feel like I'm in some type of pet shop. After all we have you, the kitty, and Gon, the puppy."

"Is that so?" a vein popped up in his forehead. "Well, if Gon is a dog, I'm a cat... you have no more option than be the beautiful chick of the group."

Hitomi grinned. "I'm the pretty girl? Oh, thanks."

Killua blushed a little.

"I don't mean that!" he shouted. "I mean the animal, you know! A chick!"

Her face fell.

"What?" she went on, angrily.

"You are a lot like chicks. You're small..." Killua smirked, touching her blonde hair, "...yellow..." after that, he poked her cheek, while she was flushing in embarrassment. "... and cute."

"Argh, shut up!" she was feeling annoyed at his smirk. "Stop smiling!"

"I won't," he replied.

"Why?"

"Because it won't be funny."

"I told you to stop!"

He didn't stop though, she pouted about it. She just found herself drown in his shiny blue eyes, listening at his laughing like an adorable, hipnotizing serenade.

But there was something about it she stil couldn't get. She forced herself to not ask, but...

"Anyway, can you ask you something else?" his laugh died down at her question. "What's up with your bicker with Knuckle over there?"

Killua tensed. That was kind of unexpected.

"What do you mean with that? I just hate people who are sickly sweet in public."

"I see..."

No one talked for a few seconds, feeling the tension that thick that Hitomi silently wondered if she was going to get without air to breath.

"Hey, Hitomi," he asked. "What do you think about Knuckle?"

That took her out of guard as well. Killua asking that... What was happening in the world now?

"An awesome friend, why?"

"Nothing else?"

"No," she answered, feeling a little unsure. "Something else to ask?"

The boy just shook his head. Hitomi blinked for a while, before grinning cheekily.

"Is that what they call jealousy?" she teased.

"As if," he replied, a little annoyed.

"Come on! Don't you like me?"

"No," that was his answer.

"Not a bit?"

"No."

"A little, _little_ bit?" she pressed. "Like a sister? Like your best friend? Like a normal friend? Like a... uh... a... an acquaintance?"

"No to all your questions!" he huffed. "Can you just _shut up?"_

"No way in hell. You will only see me in silence when I'm dead."

"Let see so then!"

He then tacked her, out of cold, starting to pull her cheeks. She reacted, pinching them as well and then the two playfully struggled, rolling across the floor in a fight. Killua ended up winning, and kept in that position, on top of her.

After realizing how childish they had been acting, Killua let out his mouth a burst of laugher, even louder than last time. Hitomi blinked a few times, finding it strange. She had never seen that boy laugh that freely before in her whole life.

But then, a laugh of her own was heard as well. After a while she managed to calm down and grinned a little.

"That's great," she spoke, using her arms to get up slightly.

"Huh?" he was confused.

"You looked really far away recently. It's good to see you smiling again."

"Is that so?"

That's when they realized how close to each other they were, but didn't do anything. The pair just blushed there, frozen.

Violet eyes melted into icy blue ones. The boy then started to bend slowly, without even thinking twice about it, getting closer to the girl. She didn't say anything about his actions, but started to lean closer to him as well.

" _What am I doing?"_ Killua's thoughts weren't that strong to stop him. " _It's like my body moves at its own..."_

They stopped, staring at each other deeply, just inches separating them. Hitomi couldn't think straight anymore either, her mind was in a total blank. She closed her eyes slightly, feeling his breath on hers. Killua closed his eyes as well, as they got even more closer. He just wasn't explain the feeling that was blossoming in his chest when he felt his lips brushing softly against hers, almost touching...

They were just too close, but he didn't mind. Even more, it was like he was beginning to like it...

Then, they both heard a loud cough, so they instantly pulled apart. The two heads snapped at the direction of the sound.

The pair then were met by a blushing Gon - who was even redder than the other two together - and a pissed off Kurapika.

"What are you doing, Killua?" the older one asked slowly, a dark, murderous aura surrounding him.

Oh, shit.

* * *

Hitomi and Killua didn't talk since last night, and Gon just stared at them. Sometimes, they would glance at each other, but instantly look away in shyness. It was like they didn't know what to think about that and about the other one.

It was a little awkward, even for their friend.

" _I can't believe I did that... What the hell happened with my self control?"_ Killua facepalmed, before quickly glancing at the girl. " _But... she did the same than me at that time... Can it be...?"_

He blushed at the thought, still surprised, and looked away again.

"Good morning!" Ikalgo, who was the only ant there because Meleoron had already left the place, greeted. "Sleep well?"

"Not really, I had a strange nightmare," a dark aura got emitted by Kurapika, as he faked a smile.

"You had?" Ikalgo asked, a little worried.

"Yeah, I dreamed about a boy pinning my sister in the floor... and almost kissing her. I swear that if I have the same dream again... I will look for that guy," his eyes shifted in red. "And hunt him down."

The ant looked at him, in confusion, as all the others sweatdropped at it. Killua flinched and avoided eye-contact with him.

" _Hitomi was right... He's kinda overprotective..."_ Gon let out a nervous laugh. " _I feel a little bad for Killua..."_

"But it was just a dream, wasn't it?" the octopus asked.

"Yeah," he glared at the boy again. "Just a dream..."

A couple of minutes passed and the atmosphere became heavier, because the task they had on hand. All five of them sat around the piece of paper, where the map of the palace was drawn.

"We have nineteen hours until midnight strikes on selection day," Hitomi commented. "Tonight, we'll finally make our move."

"Let's do one final check," Killua pointed at the paper. "Once inside, Gon, Hitomi, Kurapika and I immediately head up the central stairway, toward the throne room. Then, we will split and Kurapika will join Morel."

"Yeah," Gon and Hitomi agreed, while Kurapika just nodded.

"Ikalgo will take the northeast elevator down to the basement, to search for Palm," he turned to him. "If you find her, escape without us."

"Right," he replied in determination.

"If the King and his three Royal Guards are in the throne room, we proceed with the plan. The problem is, what if they're not there?"

"You're really hung up on that," Gon noticed.

"What are the chances of that happening?" Ikalgo asked.

Hitomi sighed, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"It's highly unlikely," she added.

"Yeah, but the unusual happens pretty often," he replied.

"Aren't you contradicting yourself?" Ikalgo was confused.

"We researched the enemy's behaviors extensively before deciding on a day for the attack. When you're waiting for someone to be in a certain place, at a certain time, that's typically when the unexpected happens. In my old job, I saw this all the time. The unusual always happens on the day you've chosen."

The girl didn't say anything about it. With the luck they had, it would probably be true - she thought.

"In my old job, I could wait for the next chance, to ensure my success. But this time, that isn't an option. We can't wait. Once we move there's no turning back. A moment's hesitation can mean death! So we should take the time now to decide how we'll act in different situations."

"Even if they aren't in the throne room, if they're still in the palace, it's okay. Pitou's En is enough to cover the Palace and its surrounding courtyards, and then some. So if we sense that murderous aura when we enter, we'll know that they're there," Kurapika continued. "From there, we just follow it to where it feels densest, and they'll be at its center."

"The question is what we do if we don't sense Pitou's aura. In other words, what we do if they aren't in the palace," Hitomi frowned. "Or if they're in the palace, but they aren't using En."

"Would they be in the palace, but not using En to guard the King?" the octopus asked

"That's what happened when Knov-san infiltrated the palace!" Gon said, and the boy nodded.

"It doesn't make sense. According to Colt, Knov-san saw Pouf's aura instead Pitou's. The Royal Guard would never leave the King's side. So if Pouf was there, the other two maybe were also in the palace with the King," Kurapika spoke. "Then, why did Pitou stop using the puppets and En, leaving Pouf to handle security, which allowed Knov-san to infiltrate the palace?"

"I believe the reason has to do with how Pitou's power works," the white haired boy raised a finger.

"Why don't we call Colt then?" Hitomi asked.

So did Kurapika. He dialed the ant's number and talked with him for a long time. After hanging up, he told them that it could be Pitou's healing, since it required a lot of concentration, so she wouldn't be able to use En or her puppets.

"Well, at least it makes sense now," Killua concluded. "Which means that someone, most likely the King or one of the Royal Guards, was injured and required healing, so the En and puppets disappeared."

"But hold on..." Ikalgo spoke. "Who would have been able to injure one of those monsters?"

"True..." Gon blinked.

"An internal dispute?" the boy asked.

"Maybe the King injured one of the Royal Guards?" the other boy agreed.

"No way," Hitomi spoke, and everyone looked at her. "I mean, do you think that Pitou would risk the King's life by removing her En to heal someone else?"

They were quiet for a bit, realization hitting them.

"Which means that the one injured..." Killua began.

"... was the King!" Gon completed.

"Not only that, there's no chance that someone else could've injured him," Kurapika went on, calmly. "That only leaves only one possibility," he looked at them. "The King injured himself."

No one talked, but keep in deep thought.

"But, why?" Hitomi frowned.

"I don't know," her brother said, seriously. "But that's the only explanation... Something is going on there."

* * *

Six hours before beginning the plan, they arrived at the agreed place, Knov's Apartment Complex. Inside the room, there were Morel, his students, Meleoron and Knov, surrounded by snacks and bottles of water.

" _Man,"_ Hitomi looked at her brother's master, whose hair was already white. " _Seems like Pouf's Nen hit him pretty hard..."_

Morel started to talk with Gon, telling him that Palm didn't communicate, and Kurapika talked a little with the man's students. Hitomi and Killua, on the other hand, sat on the floor. As expected, they were in complete silence. No one made eye-contact. They both released a long sigh.

"About last night..." they went on at the same time.

They looked at each other, in surprise, before looking away. Their faces got even redder than ever before. Hitomi shut her eyes tightly, seeing that Killua wasn't going to speak anytime soon.

"Sorry about, well... _that,"_ she spoke. "I'm not sure that came over me. Let's just say... I was just nervous because of the plan and... I didn't really think straight."

Killua didn't say anything for a while.

"Yeah, me too," he finally trailed off. "It's just..."

"Killua, you and Gon are my best friends," she smiled warmly. "Can we just forget it and keep being friends like always?"

He smiled bitterly, a little hurt at her words.

"What are you saying?" he forced himself to chuckle. "Of course we'll always be friends."

Then Hitomi stood up, to her brother soomething. Gon appeared from behind and looked at his friend's depressed state.

"Hitomi once told me about it," Killua jumped in surprise because of his sudden appearance. "I remember her calling it 'friendzone', or something like that."

In a normal situation, he would had gotten already embarrassed and deny it by shouts, but he just didn't feel like doing so. He couldn't lie to Gon, either way.

"You sure jump out of nothing, eh?" his head dropped. "You don't look like the kind of boy that knows about this stuff, you know?"

"I've been in a couple or more of dates than you, right?" Killua's eyebrow twitched after remembering it.

"Should have remembered it..." he mumbled.

Gon grinned brightly, sitting right next to him.

"Don't worry about it, it will be just fine. She feels just like you, I'm sure."

Killua didn't answer, mentally battling to find the correct answer to his internal doubts. First, a part of him wanted to believe him. Another big one actually knew what Gon had said, that Hitomi liked him back. He tried to convince himself about it: that would be the only reason for what she acted like him at... Well, that time.

But another part was stronger, and at the same time he didn't know if it was just disbelieving Gon or lying to himself. It told him to keep it quiet, to remain like nothing ever happened and that they were just pals. It echoed again and again, like it was another needle in his head. Like an unconscious self-defense barrier... To not be hurt.

"And what about Knuckle?" the boy whispered.

"Exactly like Palm and me, remember?" Gon spoke, gaining a long, surprised look from his friend. "She was a little older than me, she liked me. But, guess that? I was never able to think about her as someone more than a good friend. Just believe me."

Killua didn't find words to answer. When did his friend became that wise?

"KILLUA!" Knuckle's shout, however, snapped him out of his thoughts. He was pissed off. "How you dare?!"

The boys blinked while Hitomi eyed at the situation, a little embarrassed, facepalming. She wrote down in her 'what to do' list to kill her brother for telling him that.

"Dare to what?" the young boy asked rudely, feeling already annoyed.

"Don't play dumb! You were so close..." Killua raised an eyebrow at his answer. "Don't you know how important the first kiss is for a delicate girl like her? You dirty pervert!"

"Delicat-! Never mind..." he scoffed. "And what's with that first kiss stuff? Maybe you come from some shoujo manga... Oh, wait, your face doesn't look like it."

Knuckle just smirked at him, before bending a little, getting closer to his ear.

"Are you jealous?" Killua's face didn't change at his question. "Let me tell you something: she liked me ever since we knew each other. How much time you had to be around her to be considered a friend?"

He didn't answer again. Now that he was reminding him that, she considered him a friend by the end of the Hunter Exam... a couple of months after their meeting. They hadn't called themselves friends a lot before then, though.

Oh, yeah, he tried to kill her too - he remembered.

Such a good friend he was.

"That's because I'm kinder than you. The only thing you always manage to do is insult her," he concluded. "Therefore, she will always like more than you would ever be."

Killua narrowed his eyes, biting his lip for a bit. Then, he released a soft chuckle.

"Why would I want to be liked by someone like her?" he mocked. "If that means being your cute princess' dog, no thanks. I prefer things like they already are."

And time went on, as they glared at each other.

* * *

In seven minutes, they would be going to break into the Chimera Ant Palace, and the girl was sure that she was going to have a panic attack soon. Hitomi sighed, trying to calm herself down and pouring orange juice in her glass.

Then, Knov entered to the room again.

"The three of them gathered by the gate to discuss something. Pitou stayed there, and Youpi went back inside," he told them. "Pouf returned to the air to scatter his scales, so I don't think anything changed. I'll let you know if anything else happens."

After saying that, the man left again. The girl narrowed her eyes, before sipping in her juice.

"Essentially, that eliminates the possibility of the Royal Guard being out of the palace," Killua told them.

"Well, I guarantee that they'll be near the King," Ikalgo added.

"You can't guarantee anything," Killua argued. "We have to be prepared for any possibility, or we'll be slow to react when something goes wrong!"

Gon sweatdropped while Hitomi rolled her eyes in annoyment.

" _Here we go..."_ she grabbed a chip and took a bit.

"You only say that because you don't understand how loyal they are," Ikalgo was a little pissed. Killua looked away and huffed. "It's impossible that they'd leave the King! The Royal Guard is always with the King!"

"It's fine to believe that! But we should prepare for any exceptions!"

"Give me an example of one of these exceptions!"

Kurapika and Shoot just looked at them, the younger one with a raised eyebrow.

"One exception could be a woman..." they all looked at Morel. "Isn't one of the King's objectives to reproduce? I wasn't sure what the King was doing in the palace, but he was reproducing. That must be it."

"Eh?" Hitomi blushed a little, frowning at him. "There's no way-"

"I see," Killua nodded in understanding.

"EH?!" she turned at him. "You agree with him?!"

"That would give the King a reason to keep the Royal Guard from his bedroom..." Knuckle added. "Perhaps Bizeff was bringing women in for the King."

Then the two older males froze at the thought of it. A tick mark popped up in Hitomi's head, who knew what was going on in their minds... but she wasn't happy about it at all.

"We're sticking to the plan..." Morel stood up. "No matter what's happening to Palm!"

Gon nodded in determination, definitely not having an idea of what they were talking about.

"'No matter what?'" her eyebrow twitched. "Nothing like that had or will never happen, freaking perverts!"

Kurapika just shook his head, a little embarrassed himself.

"Got it now? You can never overthink something," Killua turned to Ikalgo. "There are probably other unexpected situations that we haven't considered yet."

Hitomi's older brother sighed and crossed his arms over his chest, feeling a little troubled about something.

"But, why did the King injure himself?" he asked out loud.

"Hold on..." Knuckle said. "That was just a theory of yours."

"Yeah," Killua agreed with the boy. "But you agreed that there was no other logical explanation."

"You're contradicting yourself... Didn't you say there could be other exceptions? Following that logic, Pitou could have stopped using En for other, unexpected reasons."

"I understand that… But something doesn't feel right."

Morel thought about it a little bit.

"Then, think about it..." he finally spoke. "When would you try to hurt yourself?"

Gon's eyes suddenly turned dark, and the girl flinched a little at the sight of it.

"When I hated or couldn't forgive myself," he replied.

"When you hated or couldn't forgive yourself?" Morel repeated. "That's the logical conclusion... But that would mean the King is a ruler with a personal pride, and not just a cold tyrant."

"Well, you've a point there," Hitomi admitted.

"For the sake of his pride, he's willing to endure pain. Speaking from experience, people like him will never be willing to compromise. If the leader refuses to compromise, neither will the Royal Guards. You should assume that combat will be our only option!"

Then, they realized that it was time. All of them stood up and looked at the door that connected with the palace.

The siblings glanced at each other.

"Promise me," she turned to him, smirking. "Promise me you will fulfill your promise."

Kurapika raised an eyebrow at her unusual statement, but chuckled. If it was Hitomi the one who we are talking about, it was kind of usual at the same time.

"I promise, don't worry," he told her.

She smiled as well, and faced Morel's back again.

"Ten seconds to go," he spoke. "Nine."

Hitomi, like her friends, got ready for the sprint.

"Eight... Seven... Six…"

The girl glanced for last time at Gon, and froze. His eyes were darker than before, nearly reaching the black scale. He was really pissed off.

"Five... Four... Three..."

When she looked at Killua, she noticed he wasn't better than him. Despite looking confident, something different shone in his icy blue eyes. It was like he was to break down in any moment.

"Two... One..."

Her heartbeat increased, and her eyes narrowed in anticipation. Her gaze never left the door in which she was going to burst at.

"GO!"

* * *

End of the chapter! Lame romance here XD

I'd like to apologize because I realized I'm an idiot (I realized that long before now, though :S) I was checking my reviews and I _just_ noticed a few people that left me a review in the first chapter of this fic and I never replied them... I AM REALLY SORRY!

 **Kitty-Cat134:** Thanks for the review and I'm glad you liked it! I hope you liked this chapter as well :)

 **Boulevard-of-The-Unbreakable:** Did you actually like my lame english and my lame OC? Wow, thanks XD Thank you for leaving a review and I hope you liked this update :)

 **otakuufan:** Thanks for the review! Hope you liked the update :)

Sorry again! Double sorry to all of you! Also, if for some stupid reason I forgot another one, count it as a triple sorry! And don't kill me please...

Well, let's begin to the others:

 **Lavendor Queen (Chapter 2):** Typing mistake, my bad :S Thanks for telling me!

 **Mr. Kohen (Chapter 31):** You thought the same for real? Wow, I really want to read a story from you XD Thanks for the review and I hope you enjoyed this update!

 **JokeLover123:** Thankies! Also, thanks for the review and I hope you liked this update :D

 **Kri:** Thanks for reviewing! Love confessions will last _a lot_ more, maybe when you die out of boredoom XD Well, just kidding. The reason is that, you know, they both are awfully slow in matters like that. Hope you liked this chapter :D

 **SoulXHunter:** I'm so happy you liked this arc so far! To answer to question, I think Killua just realized that he likes her, but he didn't notice that there's something deeper about his feelings because his unique personality :D Thanks for leaving a review and I hope you liked this update :)

 **Elisablackcat:** Glad you liked that part! Thanks for the review, I wish you had fun in this chapter :)

 **Another Cosmology:** I'm glad you liked that too :D Thanks for reviewing and I wish you liked this!

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for the visit! Let's hope you liked it :D

See you all soon!


	35. Wrong Way x Fairy Tale x Broken Promise

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( Sadly, I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 35: Wrong Way to Go x Not a Fairy Tale x The Broken Promise**

Once they arrived at the palace, they started to run, Meleoron and Knuckle nowhere to be seen because of God's Accomplice. Ikalgo - using Flutter's corpse - sprinted to the other direction.

What they didn't expect, happened. Sitting in the stairs was one of the Royal Guards, Youpi. Slowly, he noticed them and stared at the group, in shock. After realizing the situation, he stood up. Bloodlust could be felt from where they were, as his eyes shone evilly and his body changed radically.

"I am a shield," he spoke, arms growing in his back. "I protect the King with my body."

All of sudden, the roof broke. Strange, yellow spikes started to fall like meteors, destroying the floor in which they were standing.

 _"Just what the...?"_ Hitomi avoided another spike. She then noticed Killua. He was staring at the attack with a knowing gaze. _"He knows about it!"_

 _"This is Dragon Drive!"_ he froze. _"Then the old man's friend is..."_

Everyone was frozen in the spot, except of Gon, who kept running towards Youpi, despite of knowing he wasn't his enemy. Hitomi and Killua realized it instantly after, and then the others.

Meleoron and Knuckle... were they alive or not? No one knew about it. But in case that it was positive, they had to act, and now. Shoot would take care of Pitou after that.

Then, something happened and Hitomi sighed in relief. An unseen force - apparently the two missing ones - hit the ant in the ribs. They were alive.

The blow got the Magical Animal Hybrid out the way, so the three continued their way, running upstairs, past him.

The girl looked over her shoulder and grinned, when she didn't find Knuckle's APR.

 _"Looks like God's Accomplice is compatible with Bankruptcy Chapter Seven,"_ she thought.

They all felt something, a dark, intimidating aura all of sudden. Hitomi gritted her teeth, remembering clearly that presence of when Kite was attacked, and recognized it as Pitou's. She, however, forced herself to keep running.

Then, the ant smashed the stairway with his arm, splitting it in half. Luckily, the three managed to jump back and avoid any kind of injury. Because of that though, they had to get another route.

"Take care!" Kurapika shouted after his sister.

She nodded and mouthed a 'you too' right after disappearing from everyone sight, along her two friends.

They ran for a lot of time, only the pants and gasps for air being the sound between all of them. Hitomi glanced at Gon's back, frowning, before turning around to face Killua...

But he wasn't there.

"Huh?!" she almost tripped. "Killua isn't here!"

Gon didn't answer.

"Hey Gon! Are you listening?" silence welcomed her again. "Hitomi's talking!"

No word came from the boy's mouth, and she winced a little. His eyes hadn't recovered their natural shine they always had, certainly a bad sign.

A terrible one, indeed.

"The only thing you are thinking about is Pitou, right?" she asked.

The name apparently made him react, and he stopped in his tracks after hearing it. Hitomi stopped as well, looking at him, but he didn't even spare her glance.

"You want revenge, don't you?"

Gon clenched his fists. The girl just sighed.

"You know I nearly lost Kurapika in that road, right?"

The boy didn't speak. This time, it was Hitomi's turn to curl her fists into balls.

"That's why, Gon..." her eyes narrowed. "Please... Please..."

The young teen didn't even look at her. She looked at the floor, eyes watering as the words kept dying down in her throat.

"P-Please... That's a wrong way to go..." she choked, softly. "Don't go in there... Promise you won't do anything foolish... Promise me!"

Gon looked at the floor, as Hitomi started to shake a little.

"Sorry, Hitomi," the girl wasn't surprised at his answer. "I can't promise that."

And then, the boy walked away. The girl gave him a long look, wiping a lone tear rolling down her cheek, before following him in a slower pace.

* * *

Kurapika and Morel stood in front of the ant, who was surprised to see them. The younger one narrowed his red eyes, at the sight of a crying Shaiapouf, while the older one smirked.

"Yo," he waved his pipe around, as smoke covered the place.

Instantly, the ant tried to fly away, but collided with a the wall of smoke.

"Unfortunately, you've been surrounded," Morel told him.

"And also... caught," Kurapika smirked as well, as he retired a chain that was attracted in his arm. _"Poisoned Chain."_

Pouf's eyes flew opened when he realized that, and wiped his tears away. He never faced them, though. He just kept flying there, giving them his back.

"What must I do to have you both let me free?" he asked.

"Oh," Morel's grin widened. "We're not letting you out."

"I see..."

Then, Pouf landed and Kurapika tensed. His eyes became even more redder, as he held his chained arm in front of him.

 _"Promise me,"_ his sister's words rang in his mind. _"Promise me you will fulfill your promise."_

 _"I have to win this and live afterwards,"_ his eyes narrowed. _"For her."_

* * *

Hitomi and Gon reached the edge of the building, and noticed the cloud of smoke in another one, recognizing it immediately as Morel's Smoky Jail. The girl narrowed her eyes, thinking that there was where her brother was - she supposed.

The boy started to run, making her follow suit. But then stopped, at the sight of some people walking down the corridor of the other tower.

First, a humanoid but grotesque creature which she supposed was the famous King. But what surprised them the most was that behind him were two old men, and one of them was the Chairman: Isaac Netero, who waved a little at them both.

Killua caught up with them, but only Hitomi managed to acknowledge him by a brief glance. Quickly, he noticed what they were looking at and his eyes snapped open in recognition of the last man.

"Grandpa...!" he trailed off.

"He is your what?" Hitomi blinked at him. "Oh, god."

She then kept quiet and looked at the scene. Zeno - Killua's grandfather - started to leak his Nen out and created a dragon of golden light. Then Netero got into its back, the King hang on its arm with his tail and the two flew away to who-knows-where.

"Killua... Hitomi..." Gon's voice snapped them out. "Pitou is over there," his eyes never left the building. "Let's go!"

The boy then jumped high, and the other two hesitated a little. Hitomi could smell it in that thick air and couldn't help but have the feeling that after this everything she knew, everything she believed in, everything she loved, everything in her world...

Just _ev_ _erything_ would begin to fall apart.

 _"... 'Let's go'... In what sense did you mean that?"_ Killua bit his lip, refraining himself to ask. _"If I ask that question... I won't be able to stop anymore. I won't be able to get back."_

He chose to not ask it because the fear was greater. He was terrified at the thought of losing someone he cared for that much.

And like that, the pair jumped after him.

Softly, the trio landed on the other side, just to face Zeno, who looked at them and greeted casually. He focused in his grandson, Killua, noticing in his eyes how much he had changed from the last time he had seen him.

"My job here is done," he spoke. "I know nothing beyond the mission I received. I'll let you draw your own conclusions about what's happening inside."

"Inside?" Killua was confused.

Zeno didn't answer and jumped down the tall building. Hitomi watched at the precipice, just to find nothing more than darkness. Her eyebrow twitched in annoyment.

 _"Jumping that high like nothing..."_ she thought. _"I see why he gets along with that well with Isaac Nicholas... Oh, sorry, Isaac Netero."_

"Hohoho~" his annoying laugh echoed in her mind, as she imagined him stroking his long, long beard... Yep. He was exactly like Saint Nicholas, or Santa Claus... or whichever name you choose.

Even though she didn't want to at that moment, she forced herself to focus in the task in hand. She looked at Gon, who started to walk away and, with Killua, she followed him inside the tower.

Wow, _that_ sure wasn't expected. Not even a bit.

Hitomi was shocked at the scene in front of them all.

In the middle of the room was Pitou, but not in the way they could had ever thought of. She was kneeling next to a sleeping girl... a _human_ girl. A big doll - similar but different to the puppet that controlled Kite - seemed to be... healing her.

Pitou turned around, in a slow motion, as her eyes got filled with fear upon the sight of them. Gon's, however, got full of anger. Dark Nen started to got out the preteen's body like steam from a kettle.

"Do you remember me?" he asked, rage filling his voice. "I'm Gon Freecss! I came here to get Kite back from you!"

The girl was worried inside out, frozen in her spot without a single of idea of what to do, just looking at the situation developing in front of her. Killua was a little calmer, as he analyzed the scene as well.

"Get away from her," Gon started to walk towards Pitou. "I'm telling you to take that monster and get away from her. And then, fight me! Fight me, so I can get Kite back!"

But something surprised them: the ant placed both palms face-up in the floor, meaning her lack of malice. The three looked at her for a long while, shocked.

"Please wait," she spoke, in a soft whisper.

And that action pissed Gon off even more.

"What the hell?! What am I supposed to wait for?!" he snapped. "Get up! We're going outside!"

The ant didn't fight back, leaving Gon even more irritated. Hitomi and Killua didn't say anything at it, but understood the situation perfectly.

 _"Pitou looks like protecting her... and badly. The question is... Why? I thought ants only cared about the King's well being..."_ Hitomi's then eyes opened. _"Wait... there's only one answer: the King cares about someone... a human... And that human is that girl."_

Killua jumped in the same conclusion at the same time, and everything cleared up. The reason of the King's self-harm was in front of their eyes... and Pitou was desperately trying to save her.

But telling Gon that would had only worsen the condition, so they kept their mouths shut.

"I'll do anything! I'll do anything you say!" Pitou suddenly pleaded. "So please wait. I... must save this person!"

"Save..." Gon repeated, with a monotone voice. "Save what?"

"'Anything'?" Killua jumped in the conversation. "When you say 'anything'-"

"Killua…" his voice was cold and his eyes didn't even look at him. "I'm asking the questions."

His friends froze at his response, as the female one narrowed her eyes. That was really out of character. The Gon she knew would _never_ speak to his friends in that way.

"What is it that you must save?" the boy asked Pitou.

"This person is someone... Someone who's important to someone important to me," she spoke the truth. "She is the reason the King is who he is. If she dies, the King will cease to be who he is. She's that important. So... All I care about is saving her! Once she's healed, I'll do anything you want. So please wait!"

Silence filled the room for a couple of seconds, that seemed hours for them.

"You want to save her? You must save her? Save her?" he went on, shaking in anger. "How dare you say that... How dare you?!"

An evil, huge aura surrounded the young boy once again.

"DAMN IT!" he snapped. "The hell if... The hell if I'll listen to you!"

The ant looked at him in fear.

"Gon, hold on!" Killua tried to stop him. "It's likely that we were the ones that injured her. It was probably Grandpa's Dragon Dive."

Hitomi jumped in her spot, since she had never thought about that possibility.

"And?" Gon asked, indifferent.

"Pitou is probably telling the truth about healing her."

"So?"

"Let's wait until it's done."

No one spoke again, rage filling the boy's body.

"'Likely'? 'Probably'? You want me to wait because of 'likely' and 'probably'? And after we wait, it's _likely_ that this thing will do what I want?" he yelled at the tops of his lungs. "Likely? Probably? Seriously?! That's crap! That's just crap!"

The girl freaked out a little at his outburst, but Killua's face didn't change. It was like he allowed himself to be yelled.

"Is something wrong with you?!" he turned to Killua and then pointed at Pitou. "You want... You want me to trust this thing?! I can't do that!"

 _ **CRACK!**_

Slowly, the three turned their heads to the source of the sound. Pitou was there, with a hand over her broken arm and looking at the floor.

"If you want, you may also have my right arm... If that isn't enough, you can take both legs..." she looked really desperate. "If you're worried I'll change my mind after the healing finishes, you can break any part of my body that isn't required to heal her. Please let me save her!"

That was when Gon exploded in rage, using his bare fists to break the floor.

"That isn't fair... That isn't fair, damn it!" he then yelled at the ant. "Why are you helping her, after everything you did to Kite?!"

"Gon!" Hitomi tried to stop him.

"Why?! WHY?!" he cried in anger, filling the room with his aura. After a long while, he stopped and fell into his knees, in tears. "To hell with that..."

Then, he stood up, walking towards the feline ant, dangerously. He stopped and got into a fighting stance. "First comes-"

"Gon!" Killua called. "If you kill Pitou, we'll never get Kite back."

He stopped his attack after realizing he was right. He broke his pose and stood still, clenching his fists in rage.

"You have it easy, Killua," the female friend heard the boy saying, and couldn't bear his bratty attitude anymore. It was enough for her. "You're perfectly calm. Since it means nothing to you-"

 ** _SLAP!_**

"That we aren't out of control and yelling at everything like mad doesn't mean that we don't care a shit about Kite!"

Killua watched in shock at Hitomi, who had just slapped Gon across the face. Her eyes sparkled in scarlet for less than a second, as she brought her hands to the collar of his shirt and grabbed him tightly.

Gon's eyes kept cold all the time.

"I'm sick of you ignoring what the others when they have something to tell you! I'm sick of you mistreating your friends! I'm sick of you thinking only about yourself!" she yelled at him. "I just wanted to help you, and you didn't listen! Killua just wanted to help you, and you just treated him like trash! That's why I'm sick of everything! I'M SICK OF YOU, SELFISH BASTARD!"

"Hitomi!" Killua put a hand over her shoulder. "That's enough!"

Hitomi just glanced at him, before sighing. She gave Gon a last glare and freed him. The girl turned around and walked towards the door.

"If you don't want to listen, fine. Die for all I care," she gave him a last look, her eyes shining in scarlet. "I don't want some trash like you to be my friend... I won't worry about you. Not anymore."

And Killua froze there, speechless, as he watched his male friend. He didn't spoke nor look at her. The girl, on the other hand, walked away.

Killua just looked at her figure leaving, disappearing in darkness. He wanted to run after her, to bring her back...

But he was frozen. He failed to do so.

Gon talked to Pitou, and after a long time agreed in something: after one hour, the ant would come with him and heal Kite.

* * *

Kurapika jumped back and stood a few meters away from Pouf, still gasping for air. He could hear Morel's elaborated breathing as well.

That ant wasn't an easy target, that was sure. Even though he was losing a little of his strength because of the Poisoned Chain, he was a difficult match.

Hell, they didn't want to know his original strength then.

He narrowed his eyes upon realizing something and instantly after jumped back. From his wings, he was releasing some type of scales...

And the boy wasn't really fond of breathing them.

 _"Caution, resolve and confidence..."_ Pouf looked at Morel, using his Spiritual Message. _"His caution isn't as strong because he's confident. It's safe to say he has a strong personality."_

The red-eyed boy then frowned. It looked like the enemy didn't want them to inhale them... So, what did he want?

 _"Sharp-eyes, caution and deep thinking..."_ he looked at the younger one. _"He isn't that confident, but he is really cautious. He is the type who always thinks a step ahead..."_

Before anyone could do anything else, though, something could be heard. A familiar metal clenching rang in Kurapika's ears and later an explosion.

And before he realized what was happening, he found himself in front of a known face. The girl looked at him and grinned.

"Hitomi?!" he shouted at her. "What are you doing here?!"

"What am _I_ doing?" she repeated, as she couldn't believe him. "I'm here to help you!"

Morel just looked at her, shocked, as the smoke began to cover the hole from where she got into. _"Is she able to break force fields?"_ he thought. _"How much stronger had she gotten since that tournament?"_

But the siblings just kept arguing, glaring at each other.

"It's dangerous!" he scolded her.

"Ah, because being around a kitty-ant is _really_ safe," she rolled her eyes. "Next time maybe we should share cookies with her!"

"But-!"

"Stop arguing, you two!" Morel cut them off. "Hitomi is here now, and there's no way to change that. So, she will help us, fine?"

"Fine!" she smirked, sliding into a fighting pose.

This time, Pouf looked at her for a couple of minutes.

 _"Anticipation, confidence and caution, like the others,"_ he analyzed her. _"She looks like the kind who can think great things once she uses her head."_

Hitomi's eyes then shifted in scarlet. "Let's go then, Blondie," she called, before turning to Morel. "You watch our back, alright?"

"Of course."

The two siblings jumped in the air and tried to hit him, but he avoided their blows. Kurapika stood in the walls somehow and Hitomi swinged herself on the chain, attacking him when he didn't expect to.

"First hit accomplished," Kurapika told his sister, who was hanging in his chain. "Another idea for another strike?"

"Yeah, kind of."

Morel looked, in shock, at Pouf as he wiped his sore cheek and the pair continued to push him back. It looked like siblings' strength was just something else. The bond they held was just so strong that even their movements were synchronized, without even needing to agree on anything.

"Let's do this, Hitomi!" Kurapika shouted to his sister.

"Got it!" she nodded, energetically.

Hitomi swinged in her brother's chain and tried constantly to land a hit, but the butterfly-like ant continued to avoid her, only focusing in her task.

But then, Kurapika jumped to him, making Pouf avoid only to have his back against the chain. The teen landed in the ground and managed to wrap him with it.

"Fairy caught!" Hitomi grinned. "And since this isn't a fairy tale, you'll have to die."

They held the chain tightly and Pouf shouted in pain. Hitomi ran around the place, using her enhanced speed to strangle him even more. She handed Kurapika her knife while sprinting around and he jumped next to the ant.

"It's over," he tried to strike his head.

But suddenly the chains broke, that could had been expected since it wasn't the Chain Jail. Pouf flew away, gasping for air and the siblings growled.

They had been so close...

 _"They are strong,"_ he thought, shocked. _"That's a problem... A big one."_

The scales started to merge together with Pouf's wings, surprising them a lot.

"Huh?" Hitomi blinked. "No more fairy dust?"

But then, the ant's wings started to shine brightly.

"After a rebirth, all will be forgotten," in their surprise, his wings changed radically and somehow changed into some type of brown fabric and wrapped himself, forming a cocoon. "I'll need you to wait a moment."

They tensed, looking at it for a moment.

"What is he going to change into?" Hitomi joked. "A worm again?"

But under the glare of Kurapika and Morel she realized that, maybe, it wasn't the perfect moment for doing that.

* * *

Knuckle just wanted to avenge Shoot's hurt pride. But in just an instant, he realized two greater facts: Youpi had just tricked him and he was so dead now.

 _"It's over... Shoot... Kurapika... Boss... Everyone..."_ his comrades' faces flashed in his mind. _"Everything is up to you."_

He then focused in Hitomi's one. She was looking at him with her deep, violet eyes. _"Take care, Hitomi..."_

Like a gift from heaven, a ray of lightning fell from the sky, zapping the Royal Guard, who got stunned for a couple of seconds. Knuckle took the opportunity and hit him several times before running out the clif.

 _"I did it! I did it! I'm done! I can't do anymore!"_ he ran like mad for his life. _"Damn, I almost died! But I hit him eight times!"_

Youpi stood there for a while, confused, as he heard Knuckle's cheering. But, when he raised his gaze, he found something else.

Standing on the top of the cliff was a young boy with white hair. His dark blue eyes were looking at him, sparkling in anger.

"Sorry," he spoke as he calmly walked down the hill, his hands still inside his pockets. "But what's about to happen is just me blowing off some steam."

He held his hands out on his sides, as electricity started to spark in all his body. Right when Youpi realized what had happened, Killua disappeared from his sight.

The memories of that day struck the boy hard as he used his hands to zap his enemy with lightning, who cried in pain.

 _"Gon, Hitomi, Killua! Run! Hurry up! Get out here!" the other three froze. Kite jumped and tried to run towards them. "GET AWAY FROM ME!"_

 _Everything was too fast for the trio to realize what was happening. All they could see was blood, and Kite's arm flying out of his body._

He cursed Pitou, the ant who lead them to that situation with that action. If it wasn't for her, nothing would have ever changed. Everything would have remained just the same. Everything would be just... perfect.

Transforming all his anger in strength, he landed a kick on his enemy who jumped back and gritted his teeth.

 _"You have it easy, Killua. You're perfectly calm. Since it means nothing to you."_

He cursed Gon too, who kept acting so out of character because of that and becoming such a monster. He never realized how much he had hurt so many people people... Not only Killua... Hitomi too.

Youpi growled and tried to hit him, but the boy vanished into the thin air again, only appearing again to zap the ant's entire body. He then felt a punch, just before another hit... and so on.

 _"If you don't want to listen, fine. Die for all I care. I don't want some trash like you to be my friend... I won't worry about you. Not anymore."_

He cursed Hitomi as well, who walked away after saying those cold, painful words in that outburst. She would never realize how much she'd hurt everyone there too and how much she would regret it in a near future.

Using that new ability, the boy was way faster than any living creature.

Killua then gritted his teeth, sticking his enemy countless times, unleashing the grief he was feeling.

Finally he cursed at himself because of his weakness. The only thing he had managed to do was freeze in his spot every time he had to do something.

 _"I froze and I was unable to help Gon who is going to be consumed by his own rage,"_ he landed a punch. _"And he became that bloodthirsty monster."_

Youpi bit his lip, feeling another hit coming.

 _"I froze and I was unable to help Hitomi. I let her go to who-knows-where,"_ Killua kicked him three times in a row. _"And I don't even know if she is alive now."_

And then Youpi laughed in amusement. The boy was just interesting.

 _"Oh, yeah, there was a time that I didn't froze. I moved from my spot to run away,"_ he thought, grimly. _"Leaving Kite alone with a monster... leading him to that terrible destiny."_

The young teen channelled all his Nen in a powerful kick in the stomach that left the ant stunned for a few seconds before jumping back.

Then, he realized something. His white hair - that was spiky now because of the electricity - got fluffy again and brushed his forehead as it fell because of the gravity. He stopped feeling the lighting around him as well.

 _"Crap!"_ he leaped back again, out the cliff. _"I used it all up!"_

He then started to run before anything could happen.

 _"I feel a little better now,"_ he smirked. _"Let's now find that idiot before something she does something really stupid... as usual."_

* * *

Hitomi narrowed her eyes, something wasn't going well. Let's say that Pouf had been way a lot inside the cocoon. They should be happy because he is wasting time, yes, but something was telling her that he wasn't just wasting time, that he had the upper hand.

But what was he thinking? She couldn't put her finger on it.

Even Morel was starting to think that it was a trap to lure them to attack.

Kurapika's eyes didn't leave his enemy, thinking the same thing than his sister. That ant had certainly been there for an awfully lot of time.

"A Royal Guard's top priority always were and always will be protect the King, so he either is trying to get out here or..." his eyes opened. _"Or actually getting out here!"_

Without a second thought he materialized his chain again, shocking his partners. In a flash, he swung it around and wrapped the cocoon.

"What are you-?!" Morel was about to ask.

Then, he clutched and destroyed it, just to find out that no one was there. Hitomi gritted her teeth at the same time that Morel dispelled his Smoky Jail.

And Pouf was there, standing out the place.

"I see you've made your decision," he commented.

"It was a little obvious, though," Kurapika smirked. "You're an ant, and it's in your nature. Being close to the King, that's it."

But then an evil laugh got out his lips, confusing them all.

"Fifteen minutes," he looked at them. "That was exactly how long I expected you all to take before deciding to remove the smoke barrier."

Hitomi gritted her teeth, even though it took them less than Pouf expected, she felt that they'd been fooled.

"During that time, I intended to slip through the smoke and move freely, but I didn't totally accomplished that because I was a little low of Nen. But now that I'm reborn, the effect has passed and I'm as good as new," he told them. "You trapped me within that barrier to separate me from the King, yes? Meaning, as long as your prison of smoke was there, your allies would see it and conclude that I was still inside. I decided to take advantage of that misconception so I did that. I knew you would hesitate long enough to give me plenty time to act."

"You thought we'd spend fifteen minutes waiting in front of an empty cocoon?" Morel asked. "You really underestimated us."

"No, on the contrary, it appears..." he flew high up in the sky, unfolding his colorful wings, which shone brightly. "I overestimated you all."

A white glow covered all his body and the three gasped in surprise at what happened next. He broke himself up into tiny particles that formed the most unusual thing they could have ever thought of: little, chibi, Pouf-like things.

"Just great," Hitomi facepalmed. "The big fairy evolved into a microscopical Tinker Bell."

The two men raised an eyebrow at her.

"Come on! Don't you see the similarities?" she looked at them, wide-eyed. "Both are blond, fairies, leave annoying fairy dust wherever they go to and they now are both small. Also they-"

"That's not it," Kurapika sighed, before turning serious. "This isn't the time for joking, this is bad."

All little Pouf started to laugh.

"To be honest, I was upset by the fact that I'd been trapped," one of them spoke. "I was under the impression that you all were more capable soldiers... Who would carry out his original plan and be faithful to his mission. However, you made some wild guessed, let me enough time to get rid of that curse of the chain and removed the barrier. I must thank you."

"Thank you," the little things said, making Hitomi narrow her eyes. "Thank you, thank you."

Morel, feeling a little angry, blew his pipe and created puppets made by smoke, Deep Purple. They tried to hit them, but some flew away and some others disappeared after hitting them, just to appear again somewhere else.

"I can't destroy them?" Morel was shocked. "He is invencible."

"Invencible?" Hitomi's eyes widened, before mumbling. "No way..."

The little ants laughed, before flying again. The girl's eyes reddened even more out of anger, as she clenched her fists.

There was no way. She had come all this way to help, at least a little, but did nothing. It was in vain, the enemy was winning, in a way.

But she was used to this kind of situations, wasn't she? After all, it was always the same. She attempted to help someone important, but no matter how hard she tried, in the end was always the same.

It was useless. _She_ was useless.

She tried to help her brother, Kurapika... and he nearly got himself killed.

She tried to help her friend, Gon... and he was now becoming something he wasn't supposed to be.

And now... Now...

"Kurapika... Morel..." she spoke, bangs covering her eyes. "Go help the others."

"What are you gonna-?"

But when the others realized what was happening, the girl was already gone. Hitomi ran, as fast as her legs allowed her to, with her enhanced speed. She wasn't going to let him get away with it.

 _"That's impossible... Can she keep up with me?"_ Pouf thought. _"She is dangerous, for the King and all of us."_

Hitomi jumped back suddenly, when one of the little Pouf charged to her, but then felt the pain in her back because of another one.

She flew a bit, before she managed to get a grip on her feet and remain in the battle. She wiped the blood pouring from her mouth.

 _"Damn, strong even in his chibi-form,"_ she frowned.

The enemy tackled her again, in several fronts this time. She panted a little, moving her body from right to left, jumping, bending and so on...

 _"I can't reflect this kind of attacks with Ren... I can get killed because they are that strong... I have to be sure that he can hit me first..."_ her eyes then widened after remembering something. _"This is exactly like Gon's match with Gido! I can try that... it's dangerous but..."_

Hitomi released a long sigh, while closing her eyes. She had to give it a chance.

That was when the female teen's aura shut off completely.

* * *

Kurapika gritted his teeth, forcing himself to run even faster. He felt a little bad about leaving Morel and Knuckle alone with Youpi, but he knew that they would be able to take care of themselves. What concerned them right now, was something beyond that...

Where in the world was his sister?

When he had turned around that time, she was already gone. What worried him now was... What if that were the last time he would ever see her? If, from that time, she was already gone forever?

Losing another member of his family... Kurapika was aware that he wouldn't be able to take it.

After running a little more, he finally spotted her in the roof of the palace and he swore that his heart skipped a beat. She was jumping around, just avoiding several hits, without a chance of attacking.

But the most terrifying thing was that she was in a Zetsu state. He knew that, at that rate, she would get herself killed.

 _"What can I do?"_ he gritted his teeth. _"If I do something, I'm afraid she can lose her concentration and get badly injured."_

Hitomi, on the other hand, kept avoiding blows. She tried again and again to spot the chance to counterattack, but just couldn't. He was way faster than her, even if she used Nen to enhance her speed.

Thinking about that, she moved in a wrong way. Pain greeted her, as she was thrown backwards, collapsing against the hard roof.

 _"This is the end,"_ she thought, watching Pouf grinning evilly as he got in his original form.

She wasn't fast to react because the pain blinding her mind. The only thing she managed to do is open her eyes widely when she realized that the enemy was charging after her, to give her the last blow.

Time didn't flow, as she came to what was happening. Something got struck in Pouf's chest, making him stop out the shock. Slowly, the girl turned her head and looked at the person standing under her feet, in the ground.

Kurapika coughed a little of blood.

 _"Why? Why is he coughing blood? Is he injured?"_ she slowly thought, before looking at the chain. _"The chain... Little finger... That's means... No way!"_

Her heartbeats became stronger and faster out of shock.

"You won't kill nor attempt to kill someone..." he coughed a little more. "... precious to me."

He drew the chain away and panted, welcoming whichever would be his destiny. Now he was glad that Pouf would never hurt them ever again.

Pouf gasped a little for air, bringing a hand to his chest. He was sure that the chain had stabbed him, but it didn't hurt at all.

 _"He did something to me... Maybe a curse?"_ he frowned, before looking at the shocked girl. _"But what is right is that, if I hurt her, I won't get unscratched. I can die. I can risk myself that much."_

He unfolded his wings.

"You are lucky, because I can't die now," he spoke to the girl, who didn't even spare him a glance. "I still need to protect the King."

Pouf then flew away, but Hitomi didn't react. Nothing mattered to her anymore, she couldn't even think straight anymore.

That was when Kurapika felt some kind of explosion in his chest, making him place his hand on it, shutting his eyes tightly out of pain he wasn't able to deal with.

He then, weakly, opened them to give his sister a last smile. Strength left him, as he was losing the grip on his legs. The boy lost his balance and started to fall.

"KURAPIKA!" Hitomi screamed at the top of her lungs, standing up and jumping out the roof.

The boy remained there, lying on the ground and looking blankly at the sky. He didn't feel pain anymore, nor sadness, nor pleasure... He felt absolutely nothing apart from the exhaustion he had. He was well aware, that was the end.

Well, that was the price he had to pay because of his ability, he reminded himself that again and again.

He couldn't hear anything anymore... Everything felt so distant... so far away from him. He managed, though, to recognize the blurry image of his sister trying to shake him to react...

She was shouting... Was she shouting his name? It looked like it...

But something troubled him... Why was she crying? After all, he'd always been such bad brother... Who forgot her own sister because of his stupid revenge...

 _"Promise me... Promise me you will fulfill your promise."_

Her words echoed in his head again and again... Why had she said that? Why did she want to travel with him when she still had her friends at her side to laugh with?

That was right... Because he was her only brother.

He then remembered, he too wanted to travel with her that bad. But it looked like it wouldn't be possible anymore...

 _"Sorry, Hitomi..."_ his eyes dropped. _"Looks like I... wasn't able to keep... my promise..."_

Hitomi then froze in her spot. Her only, beloved brother had just stopped breathing.

* * *

End of the chapter! I just swear that everything sounded good in my head :S I hope it turned on well...

 **Kri:** Glad you liked it! Thanks for reviewing and I hope you enjoyed this update:)

 **J** **okeLover123** **:** Really? Thanks a lot and I'm happy you liked killutomi on last chapter! Thank you for reviewing and let's hope you liked this chapter :)

 **Last Future of Embryo** **:** Here it comes Gon's rage!... Hope you didn't consider it _that_ lame... Thanks for the review and I wish you enjoyed it :)

 **SoulXHunter:** Well, your favourite part is here *sarcasm* I hope you considered it bearable at least... Anyway, I'm glad you liked romance last chapter and I hope at least you liked this one a bit! Thanks for reviewing :)

 **Mr. Kohen** **:** If Killua were talking to you, he would have yelled you to shut up or hit you with a blushing face... That brat... (but I still love that little, cute brat way a lot XD) Thanks for the review and I hope you enjoyed this!

 **Silent Readers:** Hope you enjoyed it! Thanks for the visit :)

See you all soon!


	36. A Miracle x Breaking Down x Second Round

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( Sadly, I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 36: When a Miracle Happens x Breaking Down x Second Round**

Everything stopped at that time. Time froze there and stopped flowing. Hitomi's sanity died down and she stopped thinking as well. All because something that had stopped too:

Kurapika had stopped breathing.

And, like it was a compensation, the girl's one quickened. There was certainly lack of air in that place, even though she was outdoors.

"Don't joke like that..." she said in a shaky breath, forcing herself to smile. "I'm the one always joking around, you know."

No response. The girl tried again to shake him awake but no avail. Even if it didn't look like it, a lot of time had passed already. At least more than what he could ever be able to hold his breath.

 _"It can't be,"_ her heartbeats started to get stronger than ever, at the point to hurt her chest. _"No... No... No... No. No. No. No! NO WAY!"_

She gasped for air, but it was in vain. It died down in her throat. Her breathing got even harder, as she desperately tried to breath.

The air she was getting was too low.

All sense of reality got lost. She couldn't focus in anything but her dead brother. His smiling face crossed her mind again and again.

"What happened?" she just wasn't able to recognize that voice... It echoed from a place far, far away...

But blackness blinded her mind befor she could even try to recognize that somebody. Blood and blood could be seen, as she stepped in a dead village. Kurapika was there, along all her clan. His eyes were missing as well... She kept looking at his eyeball sockets.

It had happened, again.

"Hitomi!" the voice said again and she reacted.

She still couldn't recognize the people surrounding her, but they certainly were there. But it wasn't the matter now. It was another one.

Hitomi tried to breath again, but the lump in her throat didn't let her doing that freely.

"What happened?" he asked. She managed to recognize that he was a male.

"He... He used it..." she managed to say. "J-Jud... Judgment... Chain."

The other person straightened up, before she heard him explain her brother's ability to someone else... maybe his companions...

She didn't want to hear his explanation anymore. She wanted to wake up right now. To see her brother alive again... to see all her family smiling alive again...

But all because that day... Blood... Eye-sockets... Blood...

"Hitomi, listen to me!" she noticed someone shaking her hard. "You have to breath!"

That was when she realized she had stopped breathing at all. She opened her mouth, sucked the air in, but no avail. The only thing she managed to do is get her lungs hurting like hell.

"Please, breath! A little at least!"

"C-Can't..." she managed to choke.

"Okay, look at me," he grabbed her by the shoulders and made her face him. She shut her eyes tight, trying to erase the images from her mind. "And don't stop looking at me! Breathe!"

She opened her eyes and tried again to breath. Her strangled throat didn't let her doing so.

"Well, then... Tell me," he spoke. "Do you recognize me, by a chance?"

Hitomi tried to focus in vain. Her mind was way too dizzy to register anything.

"I'll take it as a no, then..." he sighed. "Let's start with something easy... uh... What color are my eyes?"

"B... Bl-Blue," she managed to spoke.

"Great. My hair?"

Her teeth gritted, feeling her ability to focus losing as the lack of oxygen reached her mind.

"R-Red?"

"Red? Wrong," he chuckled. "You always tease me about it and now you can't tell the color?"

Her eyes narrowed between gasps.

"W-W... W-White," she spoke.

"Good... Let's see... Name?"

"Ki... K-Killua," she finally recognized him.

"And surname?"

"Z-Zoldyck."

Killua smiled a little in relief. She was gasping for air now, but breathing for good.

"You pass," he said, unlikely kindly. "Now, breathe," she slowly managed to do so. "That's it... Breathe again..."

A couple of minutes passed by, the only noise being Hitomi's elaborated breathing. She glanced quickly at the others and recognized them as Morel and Knuckle.

"Fine now?" Killua asked.

She literally jumped at him, bringing her arms around his neck. She cried desperately, even more than last time when she saw Pairo.

"Shh... It's okay," he managed to say, brushing her hair in comfort, even if he himself was upset because losing a friend. He had to keep strong for her. "It's okay..."

* * *

The blond boy opened his eyes and found himself in the middle of nothing. The ceiling, walls... everything was white. Was that the hospital? No, it wasn't...

He was dead after all.

That was when he finally got it. He was dead for real.

"What the hell were you thinking?!"

That voice... No way. Kurapika's eyes opened in surprise, seeing the person who was kneeling next to him.

 _"Hitomi... No, it's isn't her..._ " he thought, looking at the adult face. _"Is... Is this real?"_

Short blonde hair... Loving blue eyes... It just couldn't be.

"Mom!" he exclaimed.

When he realized what was happening, Kurapika was wrapping his hands around the woman's waist. His mother smiled fondly at him and hug him back tightly.

Kurapika enjoyed the warm for a long time, feeling himself like a kid again. He didn't care though, he was happy. Back in his childhood, he had never thought how much he would miss his one and only mother.

"Kurapika, sweetie, what have you done?" she spoke, kindly, as he looked at her wide-eyed. "You should be somewhere else now."

"But, I-"

"Yeah, yeah, your sister, right?" she cut him off. "I know, she can be reckless most of the time, and I'm glad you protected her. But that's not the way, she needs you right now, at her side."

Kurapika's eyes opened.

"Think about her a little. She'd lost all his family now," the mother continued. "She must be devastated."

"You're right..." guilt shone in his blue eyes.

The mother sighed, looking lovingly at his little boy. Well, he was still little for her, he was a grown up man now. She was kind of sad of the thought of leaving him again, but she was well aware of what was the best for him.

And when she hugged her little child... She realized now that he had changed a lot from when he had twelve. Thinking of everything he had done... How proud she felt!

But still, she was angry with herself... To be absent in such an important part of his life...

Well, it wasn't something she could change, was it? At least, there was something she still was able to do...

"Live your life, remember, and say 'hello' to Hitomi for me, okay?" she told him, surprising him. Her eyes watered, but managed to smile. "I love you, don't forget that."

"I love you too."

He then felt her lips pressing against his forehead and his eyelids drooping, as he felt a lone, cold tear slidding on his cheek.

After a while, he came to himself and, weakly, opened his eyes.

Kurapika looked at his right just to find Morel and Knuckle staring at him wide-eyed. He then moved his eyes and spotted Killua and Hitomi hugging.

"Damn you, Killua," he said in a raspy voice. Both teens jumped at his sudden voice. "Taking advantage from a dead man..."

The girl froze there for a minute while the boy looked at him in shock. She turned around in a slow motion, watered eyes looking at him before she gasped. Her lips curved in a wide grin.

"You are alive!" she shouted.

He yelped a little, since he still was a bit sore, but chose to bear with it. He smiled at the sight his sister burying her head against his chest and hugged her as well as he could.

"How dare you?" she cried. "Next time don't bother to revive, because I'm going to kill you instead..."

"Well, sorry," he chuckled.

She got off him and he tried to move, but no muscle moved at all. He was way too weak to do that.

"Let me help you with that," Knuckle threw his arm over his shoulder, lifting him. "You don't look really well."

"Seems so," he mumbled.

"We should take him to a hospital," Morel nodded. "We should contact Knov."

Hitomi nodded, quickly dialing Knov's number. She talked a little, before hanging up and telling everyone that he was on his way.

"But I can't leave that like this..." he whispered, weakly. "I... I have to defeat Pouf."

"You had already done more than enough. You pierced him with the chain," Hitomi grinned. "And, because your condition, all of the people important for you are safe from him, right?"

"Really?" Knuckle grinned. "Does that mean that we are safe."

 _"'We'?_ Weren't you listening?" he said, with a straight face. "She said people important to me, and that leaves you out of his matter..."

"Wha-?!" he shouted at him. "You-!" Kurapika smirked, before closing his eyes. "HEY! How you dare?! You brat! To faint when someone's talking to you!"

The others just sighed. Knov came there pretty quickly and took him with him. Before leaving, Hitomi walked towards him.

"Please," she pleaded. "Save him."

Knov gave the little girl a long look, before smirking.

"Of course I will. He's one of my students after all."

After that, Knov and Kurapika left. Morel and Knuckle looked at each other and nodded, deciding to go after Youpi once again. The other two agreed to go and give Gon a hand.

Knuckle looked at her back and gave a step ahead, wanting to say something. He hesitated a little bit.

"H-Hitomi!" she looked at him after being called. "Are you okay?"

She looked at him for a while, before smiling warmly. Knuckle looked at her and blushed a little at the sight.

"Yeah, thanks for everything," she brushed her hair out of her face. "Take care!"

When she walked away, the older boy realized it. The sight of her laughing beside Killua remembered of that scene seconds ago: when he helped her.

 _Knuckle's heart stopped when he saw that: Hitomi was kneeling down next to someone lying in the floor, who Morel recognized as Kurapika quickly. They ran at her side, just to notice the horrible state in which she was. Distant, dull red eyes from where tears were flowing, without any sign of stopping. She didn't even react when Knuckle placed his hand on her shoulder._

 _She wasn't here anymore, her soul at least._

 _"Hitomi, what happened?" no answer. "Come on, answer please!"_

 _He tried desperately to make her react, but it was on vain. He clenched his fists, he had never felt that useless in his entire life._

 _That was when the brat entered in the scene. He froze in his spot when he looked at the girl and narrowed his eyes when he realized what was happening... Or at least he guessed._

 _"Hitomi!" he shouted in worry, before turning to Knuckle. "What's this?"_

 _"I don't know..." he whispered. "I... I just found her like this..."_

 _"Okay," he ran to her, with a calm expression. "Get out."_

 _Maybe a little rude, yes, but he had no choice but to obey. He looked at the little teen and noticed that, little by little, he managed to make her react. He even got from her that her brother was dead because of his Nen ability._

 _And then they hugged, Knuckle's heart burning in his chest. He bit his lip, looking away._

At the en remembered that he was useless at that time. She was gone at that time, and it was Killua's voice the one that brought her back...

Not his.

 _"Like a star..."_ he thought, as the girl walked away. _"She shines so brightly... so beautifully... But I will never, never be able to just touch her."_

He then looked at Killua, who was smirking as well.

 _"I give up. You win, Killua,"_ Knuckle smiled, sadly. He wiped a tear that rolled down his cheek. _"I never realized that, before all of this started, I had already lost."_

Morel placed a hand over his student's shoulder. He nodded, before starting to walk along his master.

 _"Well, then,"_ he sobbed a little. _"If I get out this battle alive, I'll start again. I'm going to look for another girl... and maybe one older will work as well..."_

* * *

Hitomi blinked, as she looked at Killua. Said boy had just broke some wires and was... _charging up_. It was true, she could tell by looking at the sparkles surrounding his hands, but...

Let's just say it was not normal for a boy to do that.

"Once I'm charged up, Hitomi and I are going back to Gon," he spoke as she nodded. He turned to Meleoron. "You go help Knuckle. Pouf is outside the barrier, so it's very likely the big guy was taken out. Review the situation, then you and Knuckle decide what to do, and whether to retreat."

"Wh-What about you guys?" he stuttered.

"Once Gon is in that state, he won't budge. At worse, he'll trade his life for Pitou's," the ant gave him a worried look. "I'm kidding! It'll be fine. I've always got the magic word, 'Kite'! I have it under control."

But the chameleon-like ant was aware that he was lying all along, but chose to not ask further. He gave them a thumbs-up, before he was gone.

As soon as he left, Hitomi sat on the floor leg-crossed. Her eyes didn't leave the lighting in Killua's hand, since she had nothing better to do. Absent mindedly, she remembered everything that had happened in the last half hour...

It sure had been a long day.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Killua asked, all of sudden.

She looked at him, feeling a little shocked. Realizing what he had done and what he had said, the albino boy looked away, blushing in embarrassment.

"Fine, I think. I don't know what came over me," she shrugged. "Also... uh... Thank you."

Killua's eyes opened.

"You helped me way a lot out there. I'm kinda surprised, though," she continued, smiling warmly at him. "You were being gentle, for a change."

"Shut up, idiot, this is getting weird!" he shouted at her, in a tsunderish manner as always. "It's normal to help a friend! Just _normal!_ I already told Ikalgo, we don't need to thank each other."

"Oh, sure," she rolled her eyes in disbelief.

Killua was annoyed at her attitude, but chose to not say anything. A while after that, he withdrew his hand from the wire.

"Okay," he spoke. "All charged up."

"Good, has been a long while," Hitomi stood up and stretched herself. "Let's go."

In silence, the pair got out the room and ran through the halls of the huge palace, after making themselves sure that no one was following, of course.

Killua then stopped suddenly in his tracks. Hitomi stopped a little ahead, turning to look at him in wonder, before noticing it as well.

"Someone is watching us," he whispered as the girl nodded. "And it's probably someone we know."

"That we know?" Hitomi tensed. "Who in hell...?"

The preteens walked and stopped in the corner of the corridor, from where they felt being observed. Hitomi peered, but found no one.

Then, Killua took off his pocket a yo-yo - which Hitomi had never seen before - and let it roll into the hallway, so they could use it as a mirror.

After a little, a shadow appeared, walking closer. They held their breath, as the person's footsteps got closer and closer to them.

"Wait," Hitomi blinked, recognizing the person. "Isn't that Palm?"

"That's true," Killua nodded, shocked. "But... looks like... she was captured by the Royal Guard... And she's been transformed!"

"And if Gon sees her like this... If the transformation has reached her heart..." the girl added, in worry. Killua winced at the thought. "What would happen to him?"

He then straightened up and started to walk, since he needed to know if she really was the Palm they all used to know. There was hope after all, since she had approached them herself.

"What are you-?" she whispered at him, but it was late.

The boy was in front of the ant. Hitomi bit her lip as she forced herself to remain quiet, in hiding.

 _"Palm must have sensed either Hitomi or me before we noticed her watching us using that power she told us about before,"_ Killua thought. _"I thought she could use some kind of divination to locate people, but it probably closer to her position, Palm shouldn't have been able to see me. The only conclusion is that she was watching me by some other means."_

Killua looked at the girl at the eye, who stopped.

"Palm?" he acknowledged her.

Hitomi narrowed her eyes.

 _"That's good. If she were an enemy, no matter how much she tried to hid it, she would have reacted differently,"_ she smirked. _"She must remember Killua!"_

"Killua, yes?" she smiled, surprising Killua. "Where's Gon?" at the thought of it, she grimaced. "Once he's seen what I've become, will Gon hate me?"

"Gon doesn't judge people by appearances," the boy placed his hands on his waist. "And you're assuming that he doesn't already hate you."

The girl in hidding Hitomi shook her head from her spot. She was about to walk towards her when she heard her talking.

"You're always so spiteful..." Palm retorted. "Well, it doesn't matter. I have nothing to gain from your pity. Speaking of spiteful, I see that Hitomi isn't here with you. Where is she?"

The Kuruta tensed, opening her eyes in full capacity as well as Killua.

 _"Why can she see me, but can't see Hitomi? She was right at my side!"_ the boy was shocked. _"Wait, she can't see Gon either?"_

The girl kept still, deciding to not jump in there.

"Was it a chance that you happened to find me?" the boy asked.

"Huh?" Palm was confused. "What are you talking about? You're the one who turned the corner."

"Wrong! I sensed you watching me. That's why I came this way!" he argued. "You noticed me first. Why are you lying?"

Palm frowned at his question. For the girl in the corner, that wasn't a good sign at all.

"Troublesome brat... Just where is Gon?" she spoke, angrily.

"Answer my question first."

Hitomi frowned as well, at the sight of a tense Palm.

 _"Did we notice Palm watching us only when she physically saw Killua? Does that mean Palm actually saw him and only him once, then immediately left? Then she used clairvoyance to watch him follow her, and turned around so it'd look like she was approaching Killua?"_

"For the last time..." Palm was pissed off. "Where's Gon?"

Killua frowned as well, as he swung his yo-yo to his hand, gritting his teeth.

"I won't tell you. You're an enemy, aren't you?"

Palm then exploded in anger. All of sudden, her hair started to grow and wrap around her, surprising Hitomi a lot. It then hardened, it turned to be a dress-looking armor.

 _"Why in the hell did she put an armor like that?"_ Hitomi raised an eyebrow. _"She looks like a scary princess..."_

Killua swung his yo-yo at her, but didn't manage to hit her. The young woman just broke it with ease by punching it, surprising the boy.

She charged at her, but a wave hit her on the chest. Palm split blood, stepping back because of the pain.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Hitomi smirked, standing next to her friend. "The yandere girl is not in her 'dere-dere' state, I suppose."

Palm smirked as well, wiping the blood out of her face.

"So you were here all along, right?" she ran to them. "No problem!" she hit them both and spun around. "I'll kill you both!"

They tried to fight her, but it was really difficult. Even when they were fighting two against one, they were losing pretty badly.

"What now? Will you die without a word?" she land a kick in Hitomi's back, who fell in the floor. "Will you die after speaking?" a hit threw Killua against the wall, leaving a crater.

Palm then stood in front of the two.

"Or will you just die?"

Hitomi gasped for air, while getting up.

"Hey," she groaned. "Isn't there an option in which we all live happily after?"

Not only Palm, but Killua glared at her too, raising an eyebrow.

"Got it, got it... There isn't..." she released a long sigh.

That battle was a tough one. They did their best to dodge and block, but it hurted like hell, and even made Killua's nose bleed when he tried to block one. Hitomi avoided a hit and made a quick movement, managing to finally punch her in the chest.

 _ **CRACK!**_

Killua's head snapped towards the sound and got really shocked. The younger girl was grimacing in pain while Palm was just smirking.

Hitomi then jumped back, holding her hand tightly against her stomach, doubling herself in pain.

"Great," she groaned, trying to stand still and forget her hand. "I already have a broken bone."

"It can't be..." the boy mumbled. He then looked at Palm and frowned. _"Hitomi only punched her... Is her armor that hard?"_ he looked at the bruises in his own arm. _"If the fights drags on, we'll be at a total disadvantage. But I can't run away... Gon's mind is already at its limit!"_

Hitomi glanced at the boy by the corner of her eye, understanding as well. If he met Palm like that... Something terrible would happen. Gon would finally explode.

"We can't let them meet," Hitomi mumbled and Killua nodded.

"Yeah, even if Palm's heart is still there..." the boy clenched his fists. "It'll have a negative effect now!"

Palm charged to them, cartwheeling as they tried to avoid, but got hit by the little rocks that got flying because of her. Hitomi jumped dodging a punch while Killua avoided a kick by rolling in the floor.

The ant went towards the boy, making the girl panic.

"Killua!" she called.

Palm gave him a hard kick, and released a thick cloud of dust. Hitomi, however, sighed in relief when she spotted him sticking in a wall, like a cat would do.

Taking advantage of the cloud, the girl jumped and tried to hit her by a sound wave. Palm was hit and she took advantage of it as well, so went to punch in the face - the only part that was not wrapped by hair.

The ant reacted quickly, though. She held her fist and spun Hitomi around. The girl leaped in the air before standing meters away from her.

"Palm!" Killua called her all of sudden. "Why are you looking for Gon? Depending on why, I might be willing to tell you where he is."

Hitomi didn't take advantage of that distraction, because she herself wanted to know it. She chose to simply keep her guard up.

"Huh? Why are you asking now? There's no reason..." the female smirked. "I just want to see him. He's probably nearby. I'll find him myself. Once I've killed you both!"

"Seems okay to me!" Hitomi exclaimed.

The females charged at each other, not thinking about anything anymore. However, Hitomi felt something wrapping in her hand and dragging her away of the battle.

She looked at Killua, as well as Palm, confused at his actions.

"Please, stop for a little," he whispered at her.

Hitomi looked at him like he was nuts for a long while.

"Sorry, Palm!" he said to her. "I panicked and called you an enemy... But even if you look different, you're still Palm, right?"

Palm's eyes flew opened. The other girl just looked at her in surprise, it looked like that his words had hit her hard.

"Gon is suffering. Someone he deeply respects was completely transformed. That person had his soul taken away. Right now, Gon is facing off against the one responsible!" he explained. "If you appear before Gon looking as you do now..." he paused for a little. "Gon will... totally snap."

Now it was time for Hitomi to be worried. Killua's expression had changed radically. She couldn't even see his eyes, because they were covered by bangs.

"So you have to call him by his name first. You must say, 'Gon'. That's the condition," his voice came out like a whisper. "Tell him you're okay. Before we entered the palace, Gon was really worried about you. Give him some peace of mind."

Killua had never realized how much affected by this situation he was until now. But, after starting voicing out the situation, his feelings and the truth started to come out without even wanting to.

The first tear rolled down his cheeks and hit the floor.

"Help... Make him feel a little better, if you can..." he sobbed a bit. "Only you can do that now! No one else... can do it..."

His knees then hit the floor.

"I can't... DO ANYTHING!" he then shouted.

Out of shock, Hitomi stood still next to him. She had never seen him like this... Crying hopelessly in front of someone else... In his knees... In such a broken state.

She was aware of what was happening, though. He had just broken. The sight of it broke her heart as well.

"Killua!" she finally reacted.

Following only her instincts, she hurried over her friend and kneeled down next to him. Quickly, she reached him and hugged him tightly, embracing the shaking boy. He didn't say anything, just continued crying in her chest.

 _"Hiding his pain like this... It was kinda logical he would break anytime soon,"_ she looked at him. _"It looks like he always was the one suffering the most..."_

She watched Palm's fist clenching, so she tensed up. She hugged Killua tighter, before releasing him, glaring at the ant in determination.

 _"He has been hurt emotionally more than enough,"_ she stood in front of the boy, her eyes shining scarlet. _"I won't let anybody hurt him again, even if it's just physically! But..."_

Palm's face remained straight for a little more.

"Who are you?" Hitomi whispered. "Just, who are you?"

There was still silence. She looked at her, determination shining in her red eyes.

"We had a few problems with her, that's true, but Palm was different. She had emotions, she had a heart..." Palm twitched a little at her words. "You are not Palm! And I want the real Palm back!"

Palm didn't react, leaving the girl releasing a sigh of surrender.

"Then, if Palm is dead, you leave me no choice," Hitomi got in a fighting pose. "I can't let you hurt my friend, Killua, nor leave the other one alone in that body that used to be hers... So, Palm... Please... Come back!"

Minutes passed by like hours, but no one said anything.

That was until Palm's eyes regained his characteristic shine.

"Shut up," she spoke. They both looked up to her, in surprise.

That was when Hitomi noticed something else: there was a little-Pouf flying next to her head.

"I am Palm Siberia," she frowned, before turning angrily to Pouf. "I'm not Number 1! I will never become a pawn for you ants... Even if it costs my life!"

And like that, the young girl punched the little Pouf, and he shattered into smaller parts, before disappearing from their sight. The other two didn't say anything, just looked at her.

Slowly, Killua got back in his feet at the same time the armor made by hair vanished into thin air.

"Killua... Hitomi... Thank you both," she smiled at them. "There was a wall inside my head. My emotions were separated from my body. I couldn't do anything about it. I've been like this since I woke up. You removed the barrier."

The youngest ones were too shocked to speak. The woman focused mostly in Killua.

"Don't say that there's nothing you can do," the boy's eyes went wide at her words. "If I can do anything to help Gon, I'll be happy to. But you must not forget that Hitomi and you are the ones that Gon needs most."

Killua didn't move nor talk, just kept looking at the female ant with wide eyes. Hitomi looked at the boy, before letting a smile out.

"Come on, stop grimacing for once," she took his hand, in comfort. "We can get moving instead."

He looked at the floor, nodding weakly and hiding his eyes behind his bangs. Without losing his grasp of the girl's hand, he smiled faintly and the three began to walk away.

* * *

The girl kept a tight grip on Killua's hand, as they walked through the halls along Palm hoping to find someone. That's when they all stepped back, avoiding being crushed by a falling tower like pancakes.

That was when the two teens spotted a familiar ant, who looked at them with wide eyes. He then blinked at their wrapped hands.

When they noticed that, they instantly broke away.

"Ikalgo!" Hitomi tried to cover up that. She smiled, before pointing at Palm. "Look."

"Palm..." he whispered, relieved.

They then sat together in a spot where they remained hidden from the other ants. After then, Hitomi did her best to fill Ikalgo up, leaving out the 'sentimental parts', like when Killua broke down.

"I see. But I'm glad to see you," he turned to Palm. "You returned to us. Then, as planned, I'll take you to Peijing by car."

"Ah, don't bother," Hitomi went on, without any expression. "She said she wants to stay."

Ikalgo was surprised after knowing that.

"Well, she'll certainly be useful in a fight. In terms of raw offensive power, she has Hitomi and me beat..." he mumbled, in annoyment.

 _"Did he admit that-?"_ Hitomi blinked, in surprise.

"Probably..." he added.

 _"That's him alright..."_ the girl facepalmed.

Ikalgo was the next one to blink his eyes at Killua's statement and Hitomi's reaction.

"To be honest, I want to go to Gon at once," Palm admitted. "However... I'll wait. I'll respect his wishes..."

"His wishes?"

"He's decided to fight Pitou by himself. And once he's made up his mind, that's it. He won't budge," the Zoldyck boy stated. "In return, he performs his best when circumstances are as expected. Which means all we can do is stay out of his way."

"B-But what if-?" Ikalgo was cut down by a female scoff.

"Try to talk Sadako into cutting her hair and dye it with the brightest shade of pink you can think of," Hitomi rolled her eyes. "You have a better chance..."

Killua just ignored her sarcasm and nodded.

"If he gets into serious trouble, we'll immediately rush in to help him."

Drops of cold sweat rolled down Ikalgo's head, but chose to remain in silence. The whitehead sighed, before standing up.

"We're looking for Knuckle and the others," he said, as the other two girls stood up as well. "Want to come?"

"Absolutely," the ant nodded.

At the sight of the two males smirking at each other, Hitomi chuckled. It was kind of relieving to see Killua alright again.

"Well then, let's go guys," she began to walk away, and the others followed.

* * *

Hitomi stepped in the room along Knuckle and Killua, since Ikalgo and the others were somewhere else, hidden. Inside it were a bloodthirsty Gon with Pitou and the other girl, who was awake now and looked totally clueless of the situation.

"Gon, want me to use Chapter Seven Bankruptcy on Pitou?" the older one asked, raising his fist charged with Nen to him. "If there's an escape attempt, I can track Pitou down. And if Pitou tries to fight back, APR will protect you."

The nameless girl panicked at the sound of his words.

"Thank you, Knuckle. But it's okay. I trust Pitou..." he spoke, emotionlessly, before pointing at the girl. "So until Pitou and I have met with Kite, keep an eye on her."

Pitou's eyes widened in shock and fright.

"A-Are you talking about me?" said girl pointed at herself.

But the question went unanswered, just gaining a raised eyebrow from Hitomi.

"Once Pitou turns Kite back, we'll let her go," Gon turned to Pitou. "I'm sure you're also willing to trust me, right? Pitou?"

Shaken out of shock, the ant nodded. Knuckle freaked out a little while the other two just frowned. They had never dreamed of the day that Gon would take someone as a hostage.

Hitomi released a long sigh, walking towards the girl and helping her up since she was blind. Well, you didn't have to be a genius to notice that. She even stayed with her eyes closed for that simple reason.

The blonde one put a hand over her shoulder, guiding her as they walked out the room. She felt a little guilty when she noticed her shaking a bit at every step.

"Have a name?" Hitomi asked, kindly. The other girl jumped in her spot. "Do you have a name?"

"Ko-Komugi..." she mumbled.

"Kokomugi?" she joked, and the girl shook her head in embarrassment. "Isn't? Well, Komugi, that's it."

Once they reached their destination they stood still along the others who were hiding, waiting for Gon to say something.

"Pitou and I will go by ourselves," dull, dark eyes gazed at Killua. "I'm counting on you, Killua."

In a normal situation, he would just smirk and say something, but he wasn't able to. His voice was that cold that he just couldn't recognize it... He wasn't the friend he used to know anymore.

As he walked past Hitomi, without a word, guilt hit her chest. It was awful... She would prefer being insulted, hit, shoot, killed... whatever but this. His friend had just ignored her, not recognizing her as one as well. Treated like trash...

Well, maybe that was what she got from yelling that things like that.

And without saying anything else, she saw him jumping along Pitou and leaving. Little did she know that memory would get stuck in her mind forever.

In the other second, Gon was gone.

"You sure about this, Killua, Hitomi?" they just gave Ikalgo a look as response. "You aren't going with Gon?"

"It's okay. That was always the plan," Killua's sapphire gaze didn't left the place in which Gon had been little before. "And I feel better after hearing what he's doing."

"You mean the hostage?" Knuckle asked.

"Yeah. The danger would be if we went along and Pitou managed to capture one of us. Then she would have the option to exchange hostages," he continued, before pointing at Hitomi. "And as an extra problem, we have that idiot. Someone, including herself, would end dead if something happens in a frenzy attack."

Hitomi looked at him, as he was nuts.

"You are-!"

He glared at her, and she sweatdropped.

"... probably right..." she mumbled, in irritation.

Knuckle frowned.

"It's all right." Palm reassured them. "Now that I've seen Gon with these eyes, I'll know immediately if something happens."

"Besides, Pitou won't abandon her," Hitomi patted Komugi's shoulder, startling her. "In other words, he's safe. Solved problem."

They all returned to the tower, in Zetsu state, while Meleoron and Knuckle were using God's Accomplice. That was when Pouf got into the room, looking for something or someone like mad, making the others hide further.

In a flash, Knuckle used punched him and placed APR on him. Palm then showed herself and looked at him, with a serious expression.

"I've seen you once before. Before I was placed in the cocoon," she placed the palm of her hand over her right eye. "So I can see you, no matter where you are."

That was when the female ant saw something, that made her jump in her spot. Right then, Pouf disappeared into tiny particles.

"The King... is alive!" she gasped, surprising everyone. "Pouf's main body is with the King!"

* * *

Komugi had still no idea of what was happening. Well, she now was in Killua's back, who was standing next to Hitomi, Knuckle, Ikalgo and Meleoron, all holding hands to be unseen thanks to God's Accomplice.

The violet-eyed one looked at the millions of Pouf, that looked like ordinary dust, and sighed.

"They are looking for someone."

"He must be after Meleoron," Knuckle stated. "Since, from their perspective, he's a traitor."

"You can't be that sure. There are a million of possibilities," she spoke. "It could be Ikalgo or Palm as well, since they are on the same position. Maybe it's us, trying to rescue Komugi. Who knows, he can also be after Pitou because he doesn't know that she went with Gon. Or maybe-"

"Hold on," Killua cut her ramble down. "Let's make sure."

"Wait," Hitomi blinked. "You can't be thinking of..."

Sadly, he was. That was why he was now standing on a roof with his hostage, staring at the clones in determination. When they spotted them, they merged together in one body and charged after them.

But in a flash, he was gone. Electricity ran all over his body, using Godspeed to run away.

That was when Pouf felt a huge wave hit his body, throwing him to the roof. He looked up to the source, just to find the blonde girl. She had her hands stretched at him, like she had just attacked.

"Missed me?" Hitomi grinned at him. "Let's hope you still remember me..."

Pouf just gritted his teeth, before flying away. Hitomi pouted a little, using her enhanced speed to run as fast as she could, still way behind Killua.

"Then, if you are ignoring everything else that bad, that means that she is your target," he smirked, pausing his running for a bit. "I'm up for a game of tag. I can go all night."

That was when Pouf splitted himself up again, so they started to run away. Hitomi, from the distance in which she was, did her best to help him out by waving her bracelet around to hit the ant, but was useless.

Hitomi looked at the ant and the memories of Kurapika falling, dead, hit her mind. It was exactly like then.

"Cease this futile resistance," Pouf shouted. "Your plans have already been thwarted!"

Hitomi's teeth gritted. What the hell was he talking about?

"What is the point to your transgressions? If it is the fear of retribution driving you to flee, you needn't worry," he went on. "The King will forgive you. He is a benevolent ruler."

"Don't make me laugh! You think I'll believe that!" Killua snapped, turning his head over his shoulder. "You'll probably tie us to a tree, and turn us into soldiers!"

Komugi frowned at the conversation being developed in front of her. Pouf smirked, since everything was going like he had planned. Now, he needed them to keep running and getting the girl as far from the King as possible.

"Your twisted sense of justice will never help the people! The King and I seek open dialogue. Now, release her at once!"

"Open dialogue?!" Hitomi growled. "The only thing open you have is your mouth, just to eat us all in the most disgusting way we can think of!"

Killua couldn't understand what was happening, until the girl he was carrying around started to hit the boy and move to free herself.

"Please put me down!" she started pulling Killua's white hair as Hitomi blinked from a far away spot. "Something's wrong with you! You're all tingly!"

"What are you talking about, fool?!" he yelled at her. "I'm trying to save you!"

"You're lying!"

Hitomi gasped in disbelief.

"Are you kidding me?!" she shouted. "You mean that you find a bunch of carnivorous insects more reliable than us?! Are you blind?!"

"Insects?" she asked her, still struggling. "What are you talking about?!"

Hitomi's face fell.

"... Now I remember..." she sighed. "... She is blind for real..."

Killua tried to endure the pain and the urge to hit Komugi for good. Angrily, he turned his head towards Hitomi.

"Hey!" he shouted. "Do something, Dummy!"

"What do you want me to do?!" she shouted back, a little pissed off. "I'm literally _meters_ behind you! You run way too fast!"

"Run faster, then! And use that pretty thing called _brain_ that you always brag about!"

"Oh, sorry for not being the genius here!" a vein popped up in her head. "Why don't we start with something like 'Hey, don't freak out, but you've been living in a castle filled by giant ants whose favourite dish are raw, living humans'? Seems a good idea to me!"

Hitomi shut up, but not at her own accord. She watched Pouf charging at Komugi, as Killua quickly stepped back before she could get injured but hitting her with the back of his head by accident, knocking her out cold.

Killua stood still, as his friend took advantage of that to reach him and stood still at his side. Hitomi looked at his murderous expression and frowned, Kurapika's face flashing in her mind.

Her eyes shone even redder.

 _"He wasn't aiming for me... He was aiming for the woman,"_ Killua looked at the ant. _"He was trying to kill her!"_

"Komugi-san! The enemies consider you a valuable hostage," Pouf shouted. "They will not kill you... Keep struggling! Keep fighting back! I'll save you soon!"

"You won't have any luck doing that," Hitomi said, as Killua placed the girl in the floor. She stood behind the boy, pressing her back against his. "She is unconscious now."

"Well, I have no idea what's going on here, but I know that you're making me mad," Killua jumped, spinning around with his foot full of lighting, managing to create a ring around them three. "If you enter this ring, I'll kill you."

Pouf charged at them and Killua quickly used his electricity to burn his cells and take his eye out. That was when, out of nothing, quick sound waves hit him, making him stumble against the wall, chopping his arm off.

Shaiapouf then noticed it, the girl had her hair somehow sizzled and stood up in the mid air. He then looked at her hand - the one that wasn't broken. It was wrapped in Killua's, like they were both sharing their Nen.

"I'd never noticed how useful sound from the electricity can be," Hitomi smirked along her friend, as the sparks flew around them. "And since it's everywhere, sound waves are everywhere as well."

And like that, waves of sound and blue sparks surrounded them and instantly transformed itself in some kind of shield that Pouf wasn't able to pass through.

"I'll call this the second round," the girl spoke, with a serious expression.

* * *

End of another lame chapter!

First of all... FOOLED ALL OF YOU GOOD! Kurapika is alive now and everyone happy XD I mean, I would never be able to kill him (for real at least) because he still is one of my favourite characters and if he died, I would die along him :(

Sorry, sorry... Please don't hit me because of this...

Anyway... Reviews!

 **Last Future of Embryo:** I'm glad you liked it! I mean, I was kind of insure because you know, Gon's outburst is a scene that is awesome, true, but really difficult to write. I was really afraid of not being able to trasmit the feeling to the readers... I completely agree that Gon is also great and his development is something awesome... Now that I think about it, it's true that he would do an excelent antagonist! I haven't noticed... But you know, for me no one can beat Killua, not even Gon (Sorry, a Killua fangirl is he one talking here XD) Anyway, thanks for the review and I hope you enjoyed this chapter :D

 **JokeLover123:** He is not dead after all XD Sorry for letting you thinking that! Yeah, Hitomi was really mean even in my opinion (sometimes she can be a real bitch), I hope you still can tolerate her... Anyway, thank you for reviewing! Hope you liked this one!

 **Mr. Kohen:** Thankies for the review! Happy you liked it too! Next chapter will include the episode 131 and I really hope it turns out well (because that scene is one of my favorites too). I wish you had fun here :D

 **SoulXHunter:** How could I kill him? Killing him XD Just kidding, he is just alright. Nanika won't have to heal him :D Sorry though for Hitomi's bitchy personallity, I just can help but writting about her that way (I guess it makes me as bad as her, lol XD) Thanks for reviewing and I wish you liked this chapter!

 **Terra-Vail:** Hehe... I don't think I have that high quality in storytelling, but thanks! I'm glad you liked that part (it took me awfully a lot writting it). Thanks for writting a review and I hope you liked this update :D

 **Guest:** Don't cry, your sunshine is alright now, he got away alive from my hands XD I not _that_ mean (I'm a little bad, though). Thanks for the review and I hope you liked this chapter :)

 **Veno:** *Backs away* There won't be a funeral scene because, you know... he still alive... *backs again* It still counts, right?... Thanks... for the review... and hope you liked... a bit at least... And please, don't kill me... *runs away*

 **havanatitiana:** Yeah, she had already a breakdown... that counts, right? Anyway, thanks for reviewing and I hope you liked this :)

 **Elisablackcat (34):** Exactly that XD You still have to love Killua! Thanks for the review! Hope you liked the chapter:D

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for reading! Wish you have fun:D

See you all later!


	37. Dangerous Power x Losing It All x Hope

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( Sadly, I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 37: Dangerous Power x Losing It All x The Last Hope**

Killua and Hitomi pressed their back against each other, frowning at the flying ant who wasn't stepping back at all. They just wondered how important that woman should be, because he didn't give up on killing her nor stopped to consider it.

Also, he looked like he was in a hurry and the teenagers just couldn't explain why.

The boy's eyes snapped open when he noticed Pouf stopping in mid air and flap his wings quickly, spreading some dust in the air. He tensed, and brought his arm in front of his face, to cover his nose.

"Don't worry, he doesn't want us to breathe it," she spoke, calmly. Killua looked at her in confusion. "He did so last time. I don't know what it can do to us... but it's something that we can't avoid... I think."

The Zoldyck was confused, but didn't say anything at her. He just stared at the ant.

 _"Sharp, lethal and composed..."_ Pouf observed Killua. _"That boy won't let his guard down easily... He is tough."_

He then looked at Hitomi.

 _"That is the girl of the red eyes again... She can bring me some troubles... She is really sharp as well... But unstable..."_ he frowned. _"Something had changed since last time... That's it..."_

Pouf smirked at her.

"You lost your confidence."

Hitomi tensed and gritted her teeth. Killua frowned as well, trying to get what he was talking about.

"What do you mean?" she asked, softly.

"You are more tense than last time..."

Hitomi looked away.

"It's like you don't trust yourself anymore... Something happened?" the girl flinched at her words. "Oh, I remember, that boy that looked like you... is he a familiar of yours?"

She knew, she couldn't bring herself to listen to him. But...

Pouf smirked, everything would go as he planned in a brief time. He noticed how unstable she usually was, and the stress she was under now thanks to his Nen ability. And as everyone knew, stress could make people even more unstable.

"Oh, sorry, I mean 'was'," he spoke. "He is dead now, isn't he?"

"He isn't," she didn't make eye-contact. "He is still alive."

"Because of pure luck," he laughed. "After all _you_ leaded him into that fate, am I wrong?"

Killua looked at Hitomi in worry, since her grip on his hand tightened. He frowned at the thought of that all that chat was just to distract her.

Pouf looked at her eyes.

"That eyes... Are they Scarlet Eyes from the decreased Kuruta Clan?" the girl rolled her eyes at him. "I'd read about them, and just recently I recognized them..."

The boy yelped a little, after noticing something in his right arm. It was a scratch... It was coming from their shield.

"And I remember... they were killed in a pathetic way, weren't they?"

"Pathetic?" she snapped at him. "Pathetic is your face!"

"Hitomi, don't listen!" Killua shouted at her. "He wants to provoke you!"

She knew... She knew. But she couldn't help it.

"You face tells me that you've been there at that time," he said, evilly. "How did you survive? Running away? Hiding? Such a scaredy cat. "

She couldn't bring herself to answer, he was right.

"And you were going to let that other boy die as well?" he laughed. "Such an useless brat you ended up being!"

She froze in her spot. He was right, and she couldn't deny it. She always had been useless. She would always remain that way.

Hitomi remembered the end of the Exam, when Killua returned home. At that time, she hadn't been able to stop him. She ended up seeing him again... out of luck.

Kurapika had nearly died, twice, and she hadn't be able to help him. The reason he was alive now... was luck again.

And then is Gon. She hadn't be able to stop him, to knock some sense on him. The only thing she managed to do was shout at him. Would luck be on her side again?

She wasn't that sure.

Killua, on the other hand, bit his lip. Her Nen was getting out of control, he could see, since it had already began to hurt them both. It was a matter of time until the waves started to spin and spin like it was a tornado, and kept like that even when Killua turned off his Hatsu.

Even Pouf was having some troubles, it looked like his plan kind of backfired. He bit his lip and flew away before something could happen.

"Stop it, idiot!" he shouted at his friend. "Hitomi!"

But she didn't listen. Killua frowned when he noticed her eyes.

They weren't shining in red anymore, they were _burning_ scarlet, fiercely.

He had to stop her now. She was not only going to kill herself, but everyone there, including himself. Having no more option, he held her hand tighter, forcing electricity on her.

Hitomi cried in pain, before turning to the boy, snapping her hand away.

"What the hell are you doing?!" she shouted at him. "I'm not the enemy!"

"That's exactly what I mean, dumbass!" Killua shouted back. "You are going to kill us all!"

She froze there in shock, realizing what happened there. There were some scratches in Killua's body, and then noticed that there was in hers too. She clenched her fists in rage at the thought of killing her friend by herself.

Hitomi was kind of angry. She had developed some kind of powerful technique, but she couldn't control it.

That was why now she wasn't happy over this fact. She was scared of herself.

Meanwhile, Killua picked Komugi up.

"Killua! Hitomi!" they looked left, just to find who was calling them; it was Palm. "The King has arrived at the palace's entrance!"

"Yeah," Killua nodded.

"What to do now?" Hitomi asked.

"We should circle around, following the wall, and hide in the crowd," she suggested.

"Okay," both of them nodded.

And so they did. Both females walked at Killua's both sides, who was carrying an unconscious Komugi in his back. Palm was holding a hand on her eye, probably using her Nen ability.

"How are Gon and Pitou doing?" Hitomi asked, in curiosity.

"They just entered the Peijing hiding place," she asked. "They're walking down a hallway."

Killua looked at her, feeling curiosity as well.

"How does that crystal work now?" he asked. "You can also see Pouf and me in it?"

"Yes, looking from a bit above. Wink Blue uses my crystal ball to remember people seen through my right eye. Looking through only my left eye, I can watch those people's current positions in the crystal ball. At the moment, the crystal ball is simultaneously showing Gon and Pitou, Hitomi, Killua and me, as well as Pouf, the King, and Youpi," she explained to them. "It's like watching a TV screen that's been split up. However, my right eye has only seen Pouf, Killua, and Gon. So I can only see the others when they're around one of you. And I can only use my power to watch three people at once. If I see someone else with my right eye, I won't be able to see the oldest of the three targets, Pouf."

"I'm not sure you need to keep watching Pouf," Killua commented. "If you can only see his main body, and his clones are scattered, it's probably more a minus than a plus."

"Is that so? If I can only see his main body, that also means I won't be fooled by clones," she clenched her fists. "And if his main body is only the size of a fly, I can literally crush him."

Hitomi sweatdropped. _"Looks like I'm not the only one who hates him that much..."_

"Our chance to defeat Pouf is while he's divided," she continued. "What greater plus is there?"

* * *

Pitou was walking through the halls, with Gon following suit and guiding her, when she faintly heard the phone in her pocket ringing. She quickly picked up without taking it, taking advantage of her sharp hearing and the noise in the old castle.

"Pitou-sama, this is Welfin," she heard. "I will keep this as brief as I can. Brovada and I have retaken the girl."

Her eyes opened, but kept walking like nothing happened.

"Intruders are still around, so we're taking refuge beneath the palace. I will let you hear her voice."

As instructed, Pitou opened the huge door.

"Hello? Pitou-sama?" she heard Komugi's voice. "This is Komugi. I'm fine, so don't worry."

Pitou just kept walking.

"Got it," she whispered.

"Goodbye."

Meanwhile, in the palace, Welfin hung up and drops of sweat rolled down his forehead. He looked at a mini ant, whose face was now Komugi's. It quickly became Pouf's again.

"If possible, can you get me a doctor, Pouf-dono?" he asked, as he let himself fall in the floor.

"Of course," he then laughed, because of his evil action.

But when he tried to fly away, something stopped him. He looked over his chest, and noticed a large chain that seemed not to end.

That was when he remembered... The curse...

Right after that, Pouf's clone disappeared from Welfin's sight. And so did all clones from all places, one by one.

Until it was the real one's turn. He started flying slower and slower, trying to feel even more pain, but it was on vain.

When Youpi and Meruem turned around to see what was happening, they found themselves in front of an endless chain that was stabbed right in Pouf's chest.

"Pouf," Meruem asked, in worry. "What's wrong?!"

"My King..." he mumbled. "I-!"

He never finished that sentence, just cough blood as his heart got broken in pieces, in a literally way. Meruem caught his Royal Guard between his hands and looked at him...

Pouf was already dead.

* * *

"Palm..." Killua spoke up after a long time walking.

"Yes?"

"Thank you," he looked away.

Palm's head snapped at Killua out of shock, silently asking herself if she had heard it right.

"What? What's this?" she asked, in confusion. "What are you thanking me for?"

"Stuff..." he replied vaguely as Hitomi snorted, holding a laugh at it.

"Stuff?" Palm pressed. "Such as?"

"Drop it!" he hissed irritated, in a really tsundere way. "Stuff just means stuff!"

"Wow," Hitomi joked. "I think I'd heard deeper sentences coming from Gon's mouth..."

"Shut up!" he shouted at her, still blushing in embarrassment.

Palm, however, was getting annoyed as well.

"What was that?" she scolded. "It seems wrong to make me mad while you're thanking me!"

"Don't worry... I'll never say thanks again..." there was a one-second pause between he continued speaking. "Because now we're friends. I never say thanks to my friends."

Hitomi held a laugh once again.

"That's only an excuse he made up to skip the 'thanks' part every time his skin is saved," she grinned. "He is too shy to handle it."

"I told you it's not that!" he yelled at her.

Both females gave an 'I-don't-believe-you' look, before laughing. A vein popped up in his white head and looked away, pouting faintly.

"Anyway," Hitomi spoke to Palm. "How is Gon?"

"Y-Yes, that's right..." she remembered.

But it looked like whatever she saw there, she didn't like it Palm froze in shock and fright. The other two stopped and looked at her.

"What's wrong?" Killua asked.

"It can't be..." Palm mumbled. "What's going on?!"

"That's exactly what we're asking!" Hitomi shouted, annoyed.

"Why?" Palm continued. "What's going on?!"

"What's wrong?" Killua wanted to know. "What happened, Palm?"

"Stop asking and talk, for goodness sake!" Hitomi yelled in irritation. "We can't see it, you know!"

"I don't know... I can only see what's happening... But something is wrong with Gon!"

They both froze at her answer.

"Cut it with the suspense!" the nerves were killing Hitomi. "Spit it out!"

She stood still for a couple of seconds, like she was trying to process what she was seeing there.

"Pitou is healing herself, not Kite," Palm spoke, shocking them both. "Gon is slumped on the floor next to her."

Hitomi felt somehow angry. They still had Komugi, so how come-?

"And there's something else... Pouf is in the King's hands... And dead," they gasped at it. "But he doesn't seem wounded... The King and Youpi look really confused about his death..."

"Couldn't it be...?" she looked at Killua. "Judgement Chain!"

"Ah! That's true!" he nodded. "It really worked but... Who did he attack?"

The girl folded her arms over her chest, thinking hard about it. There should be only one connection between all these points.

"That's it! Maybe he tried to kill Gon, even if it wasn't directly!" she spoke. "It's probable that he somehow lied to Pitou and told her something... Like Komugi isn't in our hands anymore!"

"Makes sense... Then he would kill Gon and Komugi at the same time... And kill two birds with one stone..." Palm said. "But that doesn't explain why Gon is crying next to Kite and the enemy."

Killua's eyes turned sad for a moment.

"That only means that Kite is already dead..." he mumbled.

Hitomi froze there, in shock. If that really happened... Gon would snap - for real this time. He is that close to the killer, so what would happen?

It gave her the chills just by thinking about it.

"I have to find that idiot!" she ran away. "Catch you later!"

She jumped out the cliff but before she could do anything fell in someone's back, just to feel some faint zapping through her body. She looked down and found herself, much in her dismay, by carried by Killua.

"What are you doing?!" she shouted at him.

"You run like a hag," he answered, annoying her. "And you're hurt."

"I hurt only my hand..." she then looked at the burnt one. "Well... both of them. That isn't the point."

They kept in silence for a while more, guilt consuming her every minute. To think in that fight she had with Gon... It made the girl want to smack herself.

"You have a loose tongue, don't you?" Killua asked and Hitomi blinked, surprised that he was looking through her that easily.

"Yeah... But... He has one, too..." she mumbled.

"You two owe an apology at each other," Hitomi just wrapped her hands around his neck, nodding weakly. "After that, everything will be like it always was..."

"Yeah... Perfect, as it always was," Hitomi nodded. "The three of us... will be together again."

Killua couldn't help but have a bad feeling about it.

"The three of us... that sounds good."

* * *

As they were reaching the place, Killua jumped high in the air. The two of them got shocked at the huge flashes of light coming from the forest, along with the sound of explosions.

"Which one of them is doing that?" the boy whispered.

"Whichever the case, it's not good at all," the girl commented. "Let's just hope Gon is okay."

Seconds after that, Hitomi was literally jumping out the boy's back and watching at the terrifying scene. There was a grown-up Gon, a muscular man with long, _long_ hair with no sense of gravity, that they couldn't see the end of. He was continually swinging a bloody fist at the decreased Neferpitou's skull.

He then gave it the final blow and stood up.

"Kite..." he whispered, rather to himself. "I finished the job, the way you taught me to. So..."

Hitomi couldn't bear seeing him in that state anymore.

"G-Gon!" she managed to call his name, with a strangled voice.

"Is that you?" Killua whispered.

When he turned around, they both swore that their hearts skipped a beat, or maybe two beats. His brown eyes were duller than ever, tears rolling down his cheeks and blood splattered everywhere in his face.

"Killua... Hitomi..." he spoke, his voice way more mature than before.

They didn't say anything at him. They both froze there, in shock.

 _"It's like Bisky... No, it isn't,"_ Killua mentally shook his head. _"Bisky's appearance changed but there wasn't a massive increase in the aura contained within her. And in her case, she was merely reverting to her original form... But Gon's done the opposite!"_

 _"How many years of endless training is that?... Maybe more than I can ever imagine,"_ Hitomi's eyes widened. _"How much this power will he have to pay for that immense aura?... Maybe more than I would want to imagine... Just to think about it..."_

That was when they noticed something else. Behind Gon, Pitou's headless corpse was rising, being lifted by a puppet made by her Nen. It immediately charged at Gon, as his friends jumped over him as well, almost getting him out the way.

 _Almost._

Hitomi's red eyes widened at the sight of it happening again. Blood was flying everywhere, as the boy's arm was chopped off his body. She wanted to scream, to run, to kill, just to do something, but she just stared at the blood, and Gon's long hair which surrounded them.

Then, she focused at his eyes. It hit her harder in the chest.

Did you ever see a _real_ smile of surrender? When you know that everything is over? When you don't have anything else to live for? When you welcome death with open arms? When you know that there is no hope?

If you did, then you'll understand what pained Hitomi that much.

Neferpitou's body charged at him once again.

"It's okay," they heard Gon speaking. Their eyes went wide and their bodies tensed. "It doesn't hurt. I'm not trying to be tough. I'm kind of happy... I finally get to be the same... as Kite was then."

"Gon..." Killua whispered.

"I feel like... I've been redeemed some..."

Gon turned around and hit Pitou with the arm he had left, sending her corpse flying. He then jumped and took his disconnected arm, stabbing right into her chest with a loud cry. He then kneeled down next to his dead enemy and slided in his typical stance.

"First comes Rock..." for some strange reason, the Nen was getting a terrifyingly darker color.

"Gon!" his friends tensed at the sight.

But he didn't react at their calls.

 _"Stop you can't!"_ Killua thought. _"I you keep using this power..."_

 _"...what will happen to you?"_ Hitomi thought the same thing.

The Nen kept growing, blowing everywhere, and spun around them like a tornado. The pair had to cover themselves with their arms in order to not fly away because of that huge power.

"Rock... Paper..."

Flames started to surround the place, and they were slowly seeing their friend getting lost, forever.

 **"GON!"**

At the sound of his name, the boy turned around to gave his friends a last, pained look. Hitomi fought to not lose the sight of him, but the flames engulfed him and the explosion blew his face away from her.

Gon's childish grin. The face flashed in her mind once again, before everything turned black.

* * *

Hitomi released a long, relaxed sigh, as she felt the warm water of the tube running through her back and hair. How much time passed since she had a bath like that? She couldn't remember...

Oh, right, at Gon's house.

She bit her lip. It looked like the memories would never let her live in peace. She looked at her feet, feeling that her good mood had just died down, as she closed the tube.

And she got surprised when she tried to dress up. Her hoodie - the one she had been using from the Exam until Greed Island - didn't fit her. It was so strange...

She looked at the calendar.

 _"August 6th."_

"But it had been a few months since Greed Island... Not a big deal..." she looked closer and gaped. It was a year before then. "Well, a year and a few months then... Does that mean that I'm fourteen now?"

She wrapped a towel around her body and looked at the reflexion of the mirror and her eyes opened a little more... She looked somewhat different from last time.

Little she used to know how radical growing-up could be. Sure, she had noticed the boys growing up, getting taller, becoming even more muscular and toned... and more, but she had never noticed the changes on her until now.

There were a few curves... and her chest had grown a little, too - she wanted to laugh in Killua's face for calling her flat-chested several times in the past. She also noticed, she was taller than before.

She, slowly, was transforming into a young beautiful woman.

Hitomi then walked closer to her bag and took some pants and a long-sleeved sweater, that fitted her. She got into her room and let herself fall in her bed, closing her eyes in exhaustion.

"Are you okay?" a male voice asked.

"Yeah... Huh?!" she quickly sat up, knocking her head against the person's one in the process. She grimaced in pain, while the other sweatdropped, with a hand placed in his head as well.

Hitomi stopped grimacing, just to see that she was in front of her brother, who looked like nothing had ever happened. She blinked, staring at him.

"What. Are. You. Doing. Here?" she asked, slowly.

"They. Let. Me. Go," he replied with a straight expression.

"That easily?!" she nearly jumped. "You literally died there! And I still don't know how you managed to remain alive..."

Kurapika just looked at his fists, remembering that he hadn't told her anything about what happened there.

Hitomi raised an eyebrow, wanting to know what was going on in his head.

"You know... when I was dying, someone rescued me somehow," at the statement, her eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "At that time... I saw Mom's face."

This time, Hitomi literally jumped in her spot. What was he talking about?

"I swear I saw her... She talked to me... She hugged me..." he then smiled to himself. "But it isn't possible, I know. It definitely was a dream."

The girl thought about it for a few seconds.

"I don't think so," the boy looked at her when she spoke. "I mean, I saw Pairo in the game because his Nen remained in his eyes, even though he didn't developed any Nen, remember?"

Kurapika's blue eyes widened when he heard that.

"Mom was worried about you. At the time of her death she knew I was safe, but didn't know if you were alright, I can tell," she continued. "So, it could perfectly be that Mom's Nen remained on you since she died, because she was worried."

"That means..." he trailed off and Hitomi nodded.

"She was the one who protected you..." she smiled warmly. "The reason you are alive is her love."

The boy thought about it. He still couldn't understand how come he didn't get it before. It was so simple, so clear... and so fantastic at the same time.

But... something just didn't felt right about it for Hitomi. She had the impression that Kurapika didn't look well at all. Since the last time she had visited him, his face was paler and the bags under his eyes were growing gradually. He looked sicker every time she saw him...

She had noticed it long ago, it was his Nen what was disappearing. As far as Hitomi could tell, Kurapika had broken his contract and restriction, so she supposed that was happening was exactly what happened to Gon, but in a slighter way... And she hoped that it was only Nen involved.

Kurapika was alive now because of his mother. She delayed his death, that was right, but at the same time he was slowly dying.

Hitomi was aware of his situation, but chose to shut it up because of her brother sake.

Kurapika was aware of his own situation too, but chose to shut it up because of his sister sake.

In the end, no one said anything about it.

"Anyway, how are you feeling?" he asked her after a while.

"What are you talking about? I wasn't the most wounded person around, you know," she then held her two hands. "These are the only two injuries. Hand broken by friend number one; healed. Hand burnt by friend number two; healed. Don't I have such a wonderful bunch of friends?"

Kurapika couldn't help but laugh a little.

"You maybe aren't that hurt physically," he spoke. "But I bet you are hurt from inside. Even more than me."

She gazed at her feet, in thought.

"Killua is still sitting next to Gon," he told her. "I find it strange that you aren't there as well."

Hitomi didn't have a good reason to answer her brother's observation.

"Did you and Killua fight or something?"

She flinched at the memory.

 _"Is there something we can do?" Hitomi asked the albino boy, looking through the glass at the bed where Gon was lying._

 _"We have to wait, Hitomi," he spoke, softly. "He will be okay, I'm sure."_

 _That should have the intention to calm her down, but it looked like it just made the opposite effect._

 _"Wait? Wait for what? It's exactly the same as doing nothing!"_

 _"Then we do nothing!" he yelled back. "There's absolutely nothing we can do for him now! We have to trust him, he is going to make it!"_

 _"Like hell he's going to make it!" Hitomi snapped. "Didn't you heard the doctor? He said that he had never seen something like this before happening to a boy all of sudden! Also, didn't you heard the last Exorcist that came to heal him? She said that if she tried Gon's Nen would kill her!"_

 _Killua's eyes opened, an idea crossing his mind. He didn't have time to say it outloud, because he saw the girl walking away._

 _"I'm going to take a bath," she told him, waving her hand around._

 _"You idiot... Are you taking a freaking bath in a time like this!" he shouted, irritated._

 _She stopped, not looking at him._

 _"What do you want me to do? Sit down and grimace here until my body gets rotten and old while looking at his slow death?" she turned around, her red eyes watering. "Wake up for once, he is gone! He is already dead in life! He won't be the Gon we all know anymore!"_

 _There was just silence between the pair. The tension was that thick that you could literally cut through it with a knife._

 _Wow, Hitomi never thought that expression would be that literal..._

 _"If there was something I could do, I'd be glad to," she turned around to leave. "But since there isn't, I won't sit here all day," she gave him a sad smile over her shoulder. "I'd hoped how many things in my life, and no one happened. Hope is lost to me."_

Well, did that count as a fight? She didn't know, and wasn't exactly in the mood to think about what was that. She just released a long sigh.

Kurapika sighed as well, before pushing her out of her bed and playfully guiding out the room.

"What are you doing?" she asked, irritated.

"For once in my life, forcing you to be with Killua," he chuckled. "Believe me, you being alone with him is even harder for me than for you."

"What the-?" a tick mark appeared in her head.

"Don't think strange things, I just telling you to accompany him," he smiled, closing the door behind them. "In hard times, friends need to be together."

He stopped pushing her and she turned around, showing her irritation.

"And what are _you_ going to do?" she asked.

"Oh, just a short call," she raised an eyebrow at his answer. "I won't take long."

Hitomi gave her brother a long, questioning look before sighing in surrender. She waved at him briefly, before starting to walk away. Kurapika watched her leaving, before taking his cell phone out of his pocket. He dialed the number and pressed it against his ear.

"I can't believe it! Someone please punch me now!" Kurapika sighed at the person greeting. "Are you calling me for real?! Who forced you to?!"

"Don't be that loud!" he replied, somewhat annoyed, "I called from my own accord, Leorio."

"Well, you have to admit that it's kinda strange. Days ago, Hitomi called me and now _you_ are calling... Something is wrong here!"

"Hitomi calle-?" he stopped himself from asking and facepalmed. "Nevermind..."

"So, may I know why are you calling?"

Kurapika turned serious again and straightened up.

"Do you have time? It's a little long to explain," his stern voice worried Leorio a bit. "It's about Gon."

Meanwhile, Hitomi looked over her shoulder, managing to see the silhouette of her brother in the darkness, coughing a little before disappearing on it while talking on the phone. Hearing his steps getting far and far from her, the girl turned around completely and faced the place in which he was just standing, fists clenching and unclenching.

 _"No matter how much it costs me... I won't let you die again,"_ her eyes narrowed. _"I will heal you both, Gon, Kurapika. I will do things right this time."_

* * *

Killua had not the slightest idea of how much time had passed since he sat on that bench, all alone. That was true that his empty, dark blue eyes never left the glass from Gon's bed. They narrowed when he heard steps coming and just shifted to look at the person.

Hitomi was standing there. She forced herself to smile and sat down next to the boy.

"I thought you were determined to stay out of this," he told her, in a whisper.

"Yeah, sorry. I wanted knock some sense in that head of yours that time, but I just couldn't," she admitted. "I also realized that avoiding to see him isn't going to help in anything."

Killua didn't answer and the girl released a long sigh. She walked closer to the glass and rested her forehead against the glass, feeling its coldness. Hitomi closed her eyes, which were again sparkling in red.

"I can't believe this is happening..." she mumbled.

The boy bit his lip. That summarized pretty everything that was going on in his head. The picture of a grown-up Gon fighting Neferpitou from his memories bombarded his mind countless times and he couldn't help but wince a little.

 _"In the end, you did everything by yourself... I get it,"_ he spoke to his friend, mentally. _"Kite saved your life, and he has no connection to us. But... still... I wanted you to ask for our help in defeating Pitou."_

The Zoldyck's fists clenched at the memory.

 _"Let's go," his eyes never left the building where Pitou was._

" _Did you say that to us as a teammate? Or as a friend?"_ he wondered. _"I know. This is just a tantrum."_

Killua smiled a little.

"It's the same as always," he said out loud while standing up, confusing Hitomi a little. "You run ahead, while I clean up after you."

He then pressed his hands against the window while Hitomi just stared at him.

"The same as always... I'll clean up your mess! But this time, I won't let it slide," he said. "You have to apologize. I'm going to heal you up," then, he shouted at the top of his lungs. "SO YOU'LL HAVE TO APOLIGIZE!"

 _"We_ are going to heal you up," Hitomi smirking, correcting him.

He looked at her, like he was going to protest, when Knov walked into the room.

"I'm organizing a team of doctors to save Gon. I'll be leaving here for a bit to transport the equipment and people with my Hide And Seek," he told them. "Do you want to come?"

"No… that's okay," Killua told him as Hitomi agreed.

"I see... Being by Gon's side and calling out to him is also necessary..."

"I'll save Gon," both the girl and the man looked at them in confusion. "I'm counting on the doctors. They're necessary, too," dark eyes looked at him. "Until I get back."

* * *

"I don't get something about this..." Killua crossed his arms in front of his chest, his eyebrow twitching in annoyment.

"Uh-huh?" she laid in the sofa of the train, not paying attention at all.

The pair was now making their way to the Republic of Padokea, place where the Kukuroo Mountain was. Hitomi still couldn't get what did Killua's home to do with saving Gon, but she shook it off.

"As far as I knew you weren't supposed to come," he continued.

"Uh-huh."

"You ended up coming."

"Uh-huh."

"And you are aware of your possible future, tragic death, right?"

"Uh-huh."

"Are you even listening to me?" a tick mark appeared in his features.

"Uh-huh."

Well, that was exactly the same than saying 'not at all'. Killua looked at her and noticed that she was wearing a pair of earplugs, listening to music or something. Annoyed, he made his way to her, pulled the earphones out and yelled close to her ear:

"DON'T IGNORE ME!"

Hitomi jumped and swore that she was too close to hit the roof. She rubbed her sore ear, looking in anger at his cat-like smirk.

"Do you want to get me deaf, you dumbass?!" she gritted her teeth.

"That's what you get for ignoring people as you please."

"Aww... But it have been a _long_ time since I listened to music. It was like it was calling me, you know," Killua raised an eyebrow, questionably. "Well, maybe not. It's just like... You gave me enough of it in the plane."

She showed him a huge, bright grin right when he tried to speak to her.

"... 'If there was something I could do, I'd be glad to', remember?" she spoke. "There actually is something I can do, so I'll be glad to do it. End of the story."

"And may I know what are you going to do?"

"Be your bodyguard! Well... not really..." she thought of the best words to say it. "I mean, we kidnapped you from there, remember? That's why I'm going to you, to not let them get you back. A kidnapper never gives their victims away like nothing, you know."

There was a long, uncomfortable silence. Killua just stared at her, before narrowing his eyes in worry.

"You can die there," he gazed at the floor. "Most likely, they are going to set us a couple of rules. If I broke them, they probably are going to send me back home, but in your case..." he looked at her again. "They are going to kill you, Hitomi."

Hitomi pointed at herself.

"Do I look like I care?" she smirked. "As you know, I'm really careless and I couldn't _care less_ about my well being, if there's no other choice, of course. I won't die, because that will mean that Gon would die as well and you would return there. So, don't worry about it."

Killua's eyebrow twitched in annoyment at her attitude, but chose to not say anything at all. Instead, he released a sigh of surrender.

"Got it," he turned deadly serious again. "Then, there are a few things you should know about our little 'mission'."

She nodded.

"We're going to my home because there's someone who can help us," he told her. "We're going to get her out of there, surely against my family's consent."

"Oh? It looks like every time I pay a visit to your house I end up kidnapping someone," she grinned. "So, who is she?"

Killua gazed at her feet for a long moment.

"My younger sister."

"Sister?" her eyes opened. "Hold on a second... I thought that Kalluto was a boy! And then you are telling me he is a _she_... and your mother said that she is a _he_... Oh, god... Your family is really messed up..."

"I don't mean Kalluto!" he was pissed.

Hitomi blinked. Did Killua had another sibling? And she thought that Illumi was too much...

"As I was saying, we're going to get my younger sister out the house..." he paused for a minute, before making eye-contact with the girl. "Her name is Alluka."

* * *

End of the chapter! Let's hope Gon's scene turned alright...

Finally we got out the _long_ Chimera Arc to enter to the last one! In advance I tell you that, in my opinion, Alluka's gender is kinda confusing... Alluka is called a she, a he... and even an _it_ in the series. That's why I'm going to believe Killua and call her as a little girl (since her appearence is a girl's as well) It gives me less headaches...

Also, I will say that (again) I won't be able to publish next chapter right away because (again) exams are in my way :( Sorry!

Anyway, let's focus in reviews...

 **JokeLover123** **:** Again, I'm happy over the fact you liked Killutomi last chapter and that I made you believe that Kurapika died (Just kidding XD) Anyway, thanks for reviewing and I hope you liked it... One more thing, you made me remember and you are right... We are close to the end and I haven't even noticed :(

 **Veno:** Well... certainly my brain didn't go there. But I can tell you that you are right in the fact that not everything is alright with Kurapika after his close to death state... but I'm sorry it doesn't have to do with the soul :( Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this update.

 **Last Future of Embryo:** So you noticed about my love about it! (I'm kind of obvious though -_-') Wait a minute... Is Togashi _really_ going to continue?! OH MY GOD! I'll be so happy if that's true *cross fingers*. Thanks for the review, I wish you enjoyed this chapter and good luck with your new job!... And about Mondaiji, it looks interesting so I'll take a look of it :D

 **havanatitiana:** Happy that you like their relationship since it's really hard to write! About your questions... yeah, they may departing sometime... and no, she doesn't have a healing technique (Sorry, she isn't great at all:( ) Well, thank you for the review and I hope you enjoyed this!

 **Guest:** I'm really glad to heard that about you! Kurapika brother's traits, the sentimental parts of the story and the romance around Hitomi aren't easy for me to write... I'm also glad you didn't lost it like Hitomi because if you did... oh god, even I wouldn't be alive right now XD. I can tell you just that something is happening to Kurapika because of that, but you'll see that in next chapters :D Thank you for the reviewing and I wish you enjoyed the chapter!

 **SoulXHunter:** Sorry for scaring you XD I'm glad you liked that chapter though and I hope you like next one! Thanks for the review :D

 **Mikamizu Mouri:** Sorry for leading to believe I killed one of your favorite characters! I'm happy another silent reader reviewed my story :) Thanks for it and I wish you liked this update!

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for your time here! Let's hope that at least you had fun :D

See you all later!


	38. Rescue Team x Alluka x Discovery

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( Sadly, I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 38: Rescue Team x Alluka Zoldyck x Senritsu's Discovery**

"How's everybody doing? Thank you for choosing the Lamentation Tour!" Hitomi facepalmed, she had forgotten _her_... "I'll be your guide for the duration of the trip. My name is Coco Loo, please call me Coco-chan! I'm glad to be at your service!"

 _"I'm not glad about you being at my service,"_ the boy mentally frowned.

Killua then raised an eyebrow at his friend, finding strange that she was repeatedly hitting her head against the seat in front of her.

"You also know her?" he asked, his voice saying that he didn't like Coco either.

"Sadly, yeah. You know, we met her when we came the first time," she looked at her. "But, seriously, her speech didn't change in these two years? Also, two _whole_ years is the time enough to realize that they really should fire her..."

Two years... Killua's eyes opened slightly.

"Don't tell me..." she shook her head while sighing. "You lost the track of time as well."

"Shut up..." he looked away, focusing his gaze on the window.

Hitomi narrowed her eyes at him for a while, before shaking her head once again. She looked up at Coco, who was staring at them, frozen, before taking a couple of steps back.

Wow, it looked like she remembered them. Also, it looked like she knew Killua from before... Maybe, because he had taken that bus to go home several times in the past.

"Yo," Hitomi waved at her. "Long time not see, Grandma."

"What did you call me?" she was pissed off, despite she kept her smile.

And Killua just shook his head at the glaring constest they were having. They both looked away when the bus went on move.

They traveled a little, in silence. That Killua found strange was that mostly Hitomi, the girl known for his talkativeness and blunt mouth - also annoying to death - was unusually quiet, probably in deep thought about something he didn't know of.

"It's strange..." Killua mumbled. "Why are you that quiet?"

"No reason at all," she lied. In fact, she was really worried.

"Really?" he said. "Last time I saw you like this was because of Kurapika..."

Hitomi flinched, making the boy narrow his eyes at her, before opening them.

"Wait... Don't tell me he is the reason you are worried, too..." he said, shocked. The girl looked at the window and slowly nodded. "As far as I knew, he was fine."

"Well... things got a little... messed up," she smiled, awkwardly. "You see..."

Killua's eyes went wider and wider gradually as listened at her, his worry and anger increasing too. He was that focused in Gon that he never noticed that Kurapika was in danger as well. His fists clenched and he bit his lip when she ended her speech.

Deciding that the last thing they needed - and that he wanted - was her feeling depressed, he forced himself to smile while looking at her.

"Don't worry, he won't die," he assured her. "We'll save them... Both of them. I assure you."

Hitomi couldn't bring herself to believe him, but nodded anyway.

* * *

"Alright, everyone. If you'll look out the windows to your left, this is Kukuroo Mountain, home to the infamous Zoldyck Family."

They both looked outside, as the mountain was making its appearance in the window. Hitomi instantly remembered Gon's excitement after seeing it last trip and Kurapika smiling a little at the sight. She also smiled faintly to herself.

They were so gonna save them...

"It's actually an extinct volcano surrounded by a beautiful, old growth forest. It rises to an elevation of 3772. Legends has it that the Zoldyck family mansion is located on the summit but no one has ever seen it."

"Well, _we_ did," Killua mumbled to her, smirking.

"You sure saw it more than me, I suppose," Hitomi replied, smirking as well.

However, without them knowing, the man behind them gave them a long, suspicious look.

"The Zoldyck Family consists of the great grandfather, one set of grandparents, the parents and five children. And they are all assassins!"

The fifth was Alluka - Hitomi remembered. How come she didn't notice that fact until now? Coco even said it last time and she didn't notice. Well, she was focused in other matters...

Last time, she went there to rescue Killua. Now, she was going there to save Gon and her brother.

 _"Does that mean that next time will be when I am the one on danger?"_ she thought, randomly. _"Let's hope there's no next time then..."_

The bus stopped and the teenagers stepped out before the other tourists. Hitomi turned around and grinned at Coco.

"Thanks for the ride, Grandma Coco," she joked.

"Call me Coco-chan, _little_ _cutie,"_ Hitomi got annoyed at her reply.

"Okay, _Grandma_ Coco-chan."

That was when Coco finally lost it. Killua gave the young woman a long, bored look before shrugging and walking towards the door along Hitomi.

"Wait, you're not going to stay here, rig-?" the annoying woman was about to tell her when a scoff coming from Killua's mouth shut her off.

"Don't play dumb, idiot. You saw me staying here a lot of times since I was a kid, am I wrong?" he then pointed at his friend. "And I bet you had seen her too before," Killua placed his hands on his waist. "Or is that you are beginning to lose your memory, hag?"

 _"Why? Just why?"_ Coco bit her lip while smiling. _"I mean, these two are the most problematic brats I had ever meet... Why do they have to know each other and arrive in the same day?!"_

"Stop talking rubbish!"

When Hitomi turned around to see two grown-up men - probably Hunters - she felt the urge to smack her face against the Testing Gate.

"Please, not again!" she whined. "If they are going to try to bomb the gate down, steal the keys from Zebro and be eaten by the doggy... I think I'm going to throw myself in front of Mike as well..."

Killua raised an eyebrow.

"Don't worry," one of them smirked. "We aren't that stupid," they both took guns out of their pockets. "We're professional Hunters."

At the sight of the weapons, the tourists and Coco ran inside the bus while crying in fright, leaving the place in a flash. Killua didn't even react, keeping his hands on his pockets, while Hitomi's muscles tensed a little out of instinct. She slided into a fighting pose, leaving her Nen out like her friend did.

 _"Yeah, of course you are, fools,"_ Killua thought. _"If you were real Hunters, you would reacted when Hitomi and I released our aura, no matter how good at hiding it you are... I bet you don't even know what Nen is."_

"What do you want?" Hitomi asked, forcing herself to hide a smirk.

"Sorry, little miss, we don't have anything to do with you," one of them pointed at Killua, while the other one kept aiming at her. "We have with your little boyfriend over there."

"Oh, yeah?" she tilted her head at one side. "But, what would happen if I-?" she calmly took a step closer to them.

 ** _BANG!_**

"Oh, that?" she grinned and the man tensed in shock, since she had just avoided his shot. He fired at her way again and Hitomi just swinged in the other way. "Come on, I could've avoided it in my sleep. That's the best you have?"

"Shut up!"

"Just wondering," the girl said while Killua sighed in annoyment... she was talking too much... "What do you have to do with that Snow White over there?"

He laughed evilly.

"Don't play dumb, little miss, you know exactly what he is, don't you?" he said, looking at the boy. "We made investigations, heard your conversation and finally discovered that he is no one less than Killua Zoldyck, the heir of the famous Zoldyck family. There's a bounty over anyone from that family's head."

"No way! Are you kidding? I thought Killua Zoldyck was the heir of the of the Brown Family!" she retorted sarcastically. "But seriously guys, you think you can kill such an 'infamous assassin' with that gun? It basically the same than using a water gun... Even water maybe could work better because his cat's traits..."

"I told you to shut up, brat!"

 ** _BANG!_**

Killua released a long sigh at the men, who were freaking out. The boy had just caught the bullet in mid air like nothing, just to leave it in the floor again.

"Idiots," he told them, boringly.

"Is it my turn?" Hitomi asked.

She started walking, when a bullet was fired at her. She disappeared from the Hunter's sight and reappeared right behind him, knocking him out of cold with a swing of her hand.

"Stop there!" the other man aimed directly at her, clutching his weapon with both hands. "I'll shoot you down!"

"Geez... You don't get it, do you, old man?" Killua sighed. "I thought it was kinda obvious that bullets don't work on us."

"Come on!" Hitomi shouted. "Kill me if you want!... Or if you _can..._ "

He was about to fire at her, when something else happened. With a slight hit with her knee, the girl managed to make the man lose his grip on the weapon and take it in her hands. She grinned while aiming at him.

The man paled like a ghost.

"Let's see... Three..." the man closed his eyes tightly. "Two... One..." she appeared behind him and kicked him in the back. "Bang!"

And the man fell unconscious in the floor. Hitomi rested her hand on her hip while throwing the gun away, being careful that it didn't fire at its own.

"Why did you play with them that long?" Killua asked, irritated.

"Who told you I was playing?" he glared at her. "Right, right, you're right. I'm getting serious now. For real."

The boy didn't believe her, exactly as any person in their right mind would do. He however shook it off and kept walking.

That was when Gon's back popped up in his mind.

 _"Why? Why didn't you ask our help, Gon? Why did you have to deal all of this alone?"_ he bit his lip, as Kurapika flashed in his head as well, walking away next to the boy. _"Why didn't you say anything, Kurapika? Why didn't you tell us you were about to die?"_

"Master Killua?" a certain gatekeeper went out his cabin. Killua didn't even react while Hitomi instantly looked at him. "Oh, but if it is Hitomi-chan too!"

"Zebro," she was surprised at the sight of him.

The boy just kept quiet, hiding his eyes behind his white bangs. Hitomi could feel his gloomy aura from where she was standing and gazed at the floor, getting what he was that upset for.

Zebro just kept watching at the pair, not bringing himself to speak a word to them. They both - mostly Killua - looked really distressed.

Killua stood in front of the gate and placed both hands on it. Hitomi was somewhat concerned, after realizing that he had just opened five gates at once, with frightening ease.

* * *

Hitomi was feeling a little exhausted already, she sure had forgotten how enormous was the Zoldyck's garden alone. Killua was walking fast through it, almost like sprinting around, and that didn't help her at all. He sure wasn't in a hurry...

Well, he couldn't help it. He wanted her so see and be seen the less he could around his house. She was going to get involved a lot already, so why to let her inside assassination business that much?

It sounded stupid for him, but he didn't care. Some part of himself wanted to keep her as out of this as possible.

He then told his female companion to wait a second and knocked a huge door. After doing that, he opened it and they found themselves in front of Killua's father, Silva. He was sitting in a couch next to a huge dog that - Hitomi supposed - was his little, cute pet.

Well, he was bigger than Mike. That explained pretty everything she thought about the creature...

"Kill, you're back," Silva said and Killua's expression remained the same. "You've grown up a lot from the last time we saw," he then noticed the girl. "And you even brought a friend, I see. Is she the so called Hitomi?"

Said girl raised an eyebrow. Did he know her? No, she didn't remember seeing him before, and she was sure that he didn't either. Maybe... Did Killua talk about her?

Oh, it flattered her _way_ a lot.

Killua, on the other hand, left his father's question unanswered. With a serious expression, he took a step ahead, leaving Hitomi standing a little behind him.

"Let me see Alluka," he spoke. "I need her power."

"Killua..." Silva trailed off.

"I don't have time, Dad!" he cut him off before he could've said something at all. "I'll go even if you stop me, so come with me," he spun around a little, pointing at the other door.

"It's useless," the Zoldyck father spoke. "No one can control Alluka."

Hitomi raised an eyebrow at his answer. She couldn't get why did he mean with control her own daughter. What was wrong with her?

"That's wrong!" Killua snapped, pissed off by some reason. "You're wrong! Brother is wrong! Alluka is a member of the family! She isn't a machine! As her brother, I'm asking for her help!"

Even the girl didn't dare to speak. The tension was thicker than she had ever through. She even wondered that if she waved her knife around now, it would be cut...

But she realized that it wasn't a really intelligent action.

"For help?" Silva repeated. "That child is not human. You shouldn't consider that thing to be a member of the family."

Hitomi stepped back out of fright, unwillingly as the enormous dog stood up and growled at them. Bloodlust could be felt from where she was standing, coming from Killua, of course. She could also see a murderous, dangerous aura rush out of his body, as he clenched his fists in pure anger.

"What did you say?" he spoke, quietly.

To summarize everything, he was a little pissed off.

"That thing is something that came from somewhere else," the older man continued.

"What the hell do you mean with that?" Hitomi couldn't refrain herself from asking. "I mean, she came from your wife's belly, didn't she? And you still don't consider her your daughter? What the hell is wrong with this family?"

Silva glared at her, intensely. The girl bit her lip, realizing that she had to shut up her mouth for good, even though she wasn't agree with all of this at all.

She had anything to do with the Zoldyck family, after all.

And as a matter of fact, she didn't want to die just because of her mouth.

That was when the dog growled at them. Hitomi turned around, getting ready to either run away or fight against the canine. Killua, however, didn't even look at him.

"Sit," he commanded, coldly.

It looked like even the dog knew that it wasn't wise to mess with the boy. He calmed down and sat again, obediently.

Still feeling that scary aura, Hitomi placed a hand over the young man's shoulder, who gave her a long, surprised look. After a while, he smiled faintly and looked with a serious expression at the father, again.

"If someone tries to dispel the contract and restriction Gon set for himself, they'll be either repelled or killed, same goes to Kurapika. If Alluka hadn't changed, I'm the only one who can help her. And Alluka is the only one who can save them both," he then bit his thumb. Killua showed his bloody finger at his father for some reason the girl couldn't understand. "If I ignore my friends friend I have the ability to help, wouldn't I be betraying them?"

Father and son looked at each other for a long time, before the oldest closed his eyes. He stood up, much in the female's surprise.

"Come with me," after that, he looked at Hitomi directly. She flinched at his intense gaze. "Hitomi. You are on time to go back. I guess you are aware of what can happen to you, right?"

"Yeah, a long, _long_ list that basically includes dying in several tragic ways," she commented, before smirking. "I'm up to that."

"Very good," he nodded. "Then, you both can come with me."

The pair followed Silva, stopping in front of a huge, metal door. He entered some kind of password, successfully opening it.

But when Hitomi say another one she raised an eyebrow.

 _"Okay..."_ she thought. _"Just how dangerous can be some little girl?"_

Another door opened while she just kept walking right beside Killua and his father, in their way to see that 'demonic' girl.

 _"Just promise me something, Hitomi," Killua told her, while traveling in the train._

 _"Yeah?"_

 _"Please... Do whatever but telling her your name."_

 _That shocked Hitomi, a lot. She just blinked at the boy, in confusion._

 _"My name? Why?"_

 _"I can't tell you yet," he mumbled. "Just don't let her know it."_

At that time, she didn't press further because she thought that the best was shutting her mouth and do as he said. He had his reasons after all.

 _"I want to make sure..." the boy continued. "You can take care of yourself, right?"_

 _The girl just narrowed her eyes in wonder. She couldn't get what he was talking about._

 _"Because... If something happens, my top priority will be helping Alluka," Killua was serious. "You'll have to get out the trouble by your own."_

 _"What are you talking about? I was already assuming that much," she smirked. "After all, I came here you help you, not being helped by you. I'm not a little girl, thank you very much."_

Hitomi had no idea of how many locked doors they passed by until they arrived at the final one. Silva stopped and the younger ones did exactly the same.

"I'm sure you already know this," Silva spoke, "but no new requests have been made."

"Who made the last wish?" Killua asked.

"Milluki. He asked for the newest computer available at the time. He made the wish himself in Alluka's presence, so he couldn't lie."

 _"Computer?"_ Hitomi mentally facepalmed. _"Using her 'illegitimate sister' to own a computer?"_

"A computer shouldn't be that bad..." he spoke, softly.

That was when he gritted his teeth, guilt burning painfully in his chest and hair covering his icy blue eyes. He trembled slightly.

 _"Was it because Illumi was controlling me?"_ he wondered. _"How could I leave my sister in this situation?"_

Hitomi felt that depressing aura and couldn't help but feel a little upset as well.

"Kill, I want to go over this again," the father told his son. "When making a wish to Alluka, what are the rules?"

"It's not necessary," he replied, softly. "I know Alluka better than anyone."

"It's necessary. Have you forgotten how many people have died?"

Hitomi blinked at that statement and forced herself to shut up. It was kind of ironic coming from a full-trained patriarch of the most famous family of professional assassins...

"We have killed more people!" Killua shouted, angrily.

"Killua, if you can't stay calm, we're stopping now. Our promise matters to me because I care about you, as your father. Can you go over the rules for me?" he noticed him glancing briefly at Hitomi. "Don't worry, she can listen too. She is into this now."

Killua started to shake again, so out of instinct the girl grabbed his hand. It looked like it made some effect, because he magically ended up calming down a little. He looked a little at her and smiled softly, before looking at the door with a serious expression.

"Alluka makes requests just by knowing the name of the person," that explained pretty everything to Hitomi. "When three of these requests are fulfilled, she'll grant one wish. There probably isn't any limit to the wishes she can grant, my guess is that she can grant any wish."

"Any wish?" she asked, her eyes opening. "Wait, isn't there any extra fee or anything?"

"Yeah, there's something like that," he nodded at her. "The bigger the wish she grants, the bigger the next three requests will be. In other words, an equivalent exchange. And the sacrifice isn't made by the one whose wish was granted, it's the next person who fulfills the requests."

While he was explaining, the father started to open the door.

"If someone denies four of Alluka's requests in a row, that person and their most loved one, meaning a minimum of two people, will die," Hitomi frowned at the revelation. "The bigger the wish, the more people die when the requests aren't fulfilled."

And after that, the boy looked at Silva and he nodded, finally letting them inside the room. Hitomi gave her friend a comforting squeeze with her hand and he tightened his grasp on her as well, before letting go of each other.

Hitomi expected some monster inside a black, empty room or something as creepy as it inside the room. However, what she found, caught her off guard.

There was a room filled with colorful plushies and drawings. The walls were painted like she were actually outside, with blue sky and huge flowers.

In the middle of the room was a little girl. She was dressed mostly in pink and green. Her hair was black, decorated with a headband and a lot of pins which resembled faces in strands of it, and was covering her face since she was looking at the floor.

Killua started to walk forward, in silence, as the door closed. It really pained him seeing his sister locked in such a room.

Alluka heard someone coming and slowly looked up. She blinked her bright blue eyes, before grinning widely at the sight of the boy.

"Big brother!"

"Alluka," the boy called, smiling.

Hitomi looked at the scene wide-eyed, as the kid stood up and threw herself over the boy, wrapping her arms around his neck. It was kind of surprising that he hug her back, since usually - the Kuruta girl supposed - he would punch anyone away if they did that. It was shocking to see him in the 'big brother role'.

"Sorry about leaving you down here for so long, Alluka," he said, closing his eyes softly, hugging her tighter. "I'm sorry."

 _"Lucky girl..."_ Hitomi through randomly before smacking herself. _"Great. Now that I know I'm fourteen I'm starting to act like a standard hormonal teenager... Come on! She is his sister, isn't she?"_

The girl then looked at the scene and smiled a little. To hell jealousy, they were so freaking sweet together.

"It's okay! I'm really happy!" Alluka shook her head, still don't letting go of him. "I've missed your scent..."

That was when she noticed something else and let go of her brother, looking at Hitomi with a curious gaze. The girl flinched at it, feeling a little uneasy.

"Who are you?" she asked, innocently.

"I... I'm... uh..." words died down in her throat, while pointing at herself.

"Oh, she's just a bodyguard," Killua replied and Hitomi's eyebrow twitched at his answer.

"Really?" the Zoldyck girl was still curious. "Hey, what's your name?"

Hitomi flinched again. She had to ask that for all the questions...

"Don't bother, it's not important," the boy shrugged before she could say anything. "She doesn't remember it, anyway..."

"What?" Alluka asked as the other girl mentally facepalmed. "Why?"

"Don't know. The path of the life, I suppose," she went on, quickly changing the topic. "Hey, do you mind if I sit in your bed meanwhile?"

"Sure..." she blinked.

Successfully getting rid of such an uncomfortable topic, Hitomi sat in Alluka's _huge_ bed. She found it softer than she expected to and looked around. It looked like Silva gave the child everything someone could ask for, somewhat like spoiling. It was upsetting, though, knowing that it wasn't because of love but fear.

And she thought that Gon's father was too much...

She however managed to shake it off and focus on Killua and Alluka, who were sitting on the floor next to each other. The little girl then imitated a gun with her tiny fingers and aimed at him.

"Big brother, die," she requested, happily.

Hitomi jumped at these words.

"Wha-?" she was about to ask.

Killua smiled at his sister, ignoring her friend completely.

"Okay, sure."

"H-Hey! Wait a min-!" Hitomi panicked.

"Bang!" she called, brightly.

The older girl gasped at the headless boy falling in the floor with a thud, while Alluka continued laughing. She, however, blinked when she didn't find any trace of blood.

"Big brother!" she sung. "Wake up~!"

The boy raised from the floor, as a headless zombie-thing until he sat up again. The little child's eyes sparkled in excitement at her older brother's act.

"Boo!" he shouted, as his head popped up from the turtleneck of his shirt. As childish as it was, it managed to make Hitomi jump in her spot, her heart in her throat.

Alluka, however, clapped happily.

"You're so good!" she chirped.

"Damn too good..." Hitomi mumbled as she hit her face against Alluka's sheets.

Time passed by, as the girl watched the siblings playing shiritori. After a long while, Alluka asked Killua to pat her head and he accepted. Hitomi couldn't help but release a smile upon the sight of the little girl snuggling in her brother's chest, as he stroke her black hair tenderly.

Her smile then erased when she noticed Killua looking at her. She kept still for a while and blinked under his gaze, before getting it. Hitomi then nodded, standing up as the boy picked the child up bridal style. The pair then stood in front of the closed door.

"Father, open the door," Killua said to Silva, who was listening through the speakers.

"No," he replied. "Make the wish in that room. We cannot let you go outside."

Hitomi narrowed her eyes, glaring daggers at the camera. She stepped ahead the siblings, stretching the hand with the bracelet in front of her.

"Listen, Killer-san, you have two options. The first one is that you let us go in peace, with a happy end of the story for either you and me," her eyes shifted in scarlet. "The other one is that we leave by force, but it won't end really pretty... Especially for me, but-"

She was stopped when she noticed Killua placing a hand over her shoulder, probably to stop her and say that he was going to take care of that.

"Father, I am definitely your son. You said Alluka was something that came from somewhere else, right? I call the black-eyed Alluka 'Something', Nanika. We're leaving. I'll clean up my own mess," he then turned to Alluka, whose face was still unseen and buried in Killua's chest. "Nanika, if we haven't left the mountain in half an hour, kill my mother."

Everything was silent for a while. Hitomi looked at Killua for a while, before rolling her eyes.

"Yep, definitely his son," she mumbled. "Lovely father, lovely son."

Killua just shrugged at her.

"Huh? Hey, you damned brat!" another voice shouted.

"Your brother? Well, lovely brother you have!" she started to think. "If there are five brothers... Leaving Alluka, Kalluto - his voice is not feminine at all - and Illumi out... Who-? Wait, is he the Milky-guy?" sshe then joked. "Hey, does the milk come from cows or goats?"

 _"Well, he is definitely a cow so-"_ he thought.

"IT'S MILLUKI, YOU IDIOT!" Milluki yelled at her

"Yeah, yeah," she waved her hand around. "Who cares anyway?"

Killua chuckled a little at it, before turning to Nanika again. She was releasing a dark, terrifying _aura_ that even Hitomi noticed.

"If we've left the mountain in half an hour," he continued. "I want you to kiss me on the cheek. Got it?"

Nanika then turned her head and looked at the camera, showing that her face had changed radically. Her face was all white, both her eyes and smiling mouth replaced by pitch black holes.

"... 'Kay," that was her only answer.

Hitomi just blinked at her. "Wow, lovely sister, too," she spoke.

Killua raised an eyebrow at his friend before smirking while shaking his head. It looked like nothing could surprise her now. Serious again, he turned to the camera.

"Father, open the door," he spoke.

* * *

"We have to hurry up," Hitomi spoke, arms folded behind her head, as they _slowly_ made their way out the mountain. "Your mother can die, you know."

"Ah, don't worry," he smirked, his cat ears popping out his head. "There's no need to hurry~!"

Hitomi facepalmed.

 _"You look somewhat happy about your own mother's death..."_ she sweatdropped.

"Killua!" Alluka scolded. "Don't be mean!"

Hitomi then gave Killua a questioning look. As far as she knew, Alluka always called him Big brother. But now he was calling him by his first name.

The boy noticed her confusion and understood.

"Oh, it's because is the one Nanika out," Hitomi raised an eyebrow at his answer. "You see, when she calls me Big brother, she's the real Alluka. The Alluka that calls me Killua is Nanika."

"Wow, it's really messed up... My brain is gonna explode... Seriously."

The Zoldyck boy just chuckled, before turning to his sister. Since they were now out the mountain, she grinned at gave the boy a sweet, quick kiss in the cheek.

Hitomi couldn't help but smile at it. She wondered if when she was with Kurapika they were that cute... Probably not.

"Anyway, I was wanting to ask you something," Killua asked Hitomi, who just looked at him in acknowledge. "How come you weren't shocked when you saw Nanika?"

"Hmm, I don't know..." she shrugged. "I had seen a lot of shocking stuff already and it kinda became usual, I think..."

"Stuff? Such as?"

"I don't know. To begin with, I come from a family whose eyes become red when pissed off..." she then counted. "Then... I've seen 127 eyeless bodies... a psycho clown killing everyone with a freaking deck of cards... _someone_ \- who I won't name - stealing a man's heart in a literal way... a guy with needles struck in his head turning into another person after taking them away... a guy whose stomach exploded inside-out... a cute girl with 57 years old... a flying arm - I saw that twice actually... a male fairy with multicolor wings... one of my best friends transforming from a fourteen-year old cute boy to a creepy muscular man with _long_ hair, which had some kind of beanstalk-complex... Want me to go on? Because I have a handful more examples to give you."

"No, I think I got it," his eyebrow twitched as Alluka blinked at her. "Thank you very much..."

Hitomi grinned.

"Well, my time for questioning... Is there any other reason for bringing Alluka with us more than your older brother's instinct to set her free?"

"Actually, yeah," he replied. "Nanika is skilled at breaking, but not as skilled at fixing. When she's fixing, Nanika must touch the target. So she must touch Gon and Kurapika."

"Oh, makes sense," Hitomi then noticed something. "Hey, just a minute!"

Killua raised an eyebrow while Alluka blinked at the girl who ran ahead and stood in front of the Testing Gate. The boy then understood it and shook his head at Hitomi's childish grin.

"I'll test it! It's called the _Testing_ Gate for a reason, right?"

Hitomi placed her hands on it, taking a deep breath, before pushing with all her strenght. They all got surprised - incluiding herself - that she managed to open up the third gate. Once outside, she released the door and waved her hands around, in excitement.

"It's not a big deal. I still won," Killua told her, smirking. "I was able to open up the fifth gate."

"Sorry for not being trained since I born, Genius-san," she rolled her eyes. "Before being a Hunter, that was your mark, or so Zebro told us. Mine was one at that time," she turned around, smiling cutely. "It looked like I improved a little, didn't I?"

Seeing her smile, he blushed a little. He turned his head around, as he walked past her quickly. Alluka noticed her brother's strange behaviour and blinked at the scene.

"Well, yeah," he chuckled. "Just let's go."

* * *

"Killua?" Morel replied from the other line of the phone. "Where are you two now? Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah, we're on our way back," Killua replied casually. "How'd it go with Gon?"

Alluka blinked and looked curiously while Zebro and Hitomi just kept silent.

"No luck," he replied. "When we told him about Kite, there was no response on the monitors. A lot of people have dropped by to talk to him. But there's been no reaction."

"Okay," he glanced a little at his friend. "How about Kurapika?"

There was an uncomfortable silence.

"He says he is alright, but that's totally out of reality. Even Knuckle could tell no matter how much he tried to hide it," he confessed. "He still looks deathly pale and his Nen hadn't returned. He's not getting better at all either."

"Right, I understand," the boy spoke. "I doubt we can heal them with normal measures."

"Wait! Don't be hasty, Killua. As you said, Gon used a contract and restriction to temporarily wield an immense amount of Nen, right? Kurapika broke his own and his condition was death, it's a miracle he isn't dead right now! Then it's best if we let a Nen exorcist take care of it. We can wait until we've exhausted all our options to resort to riskier measures."

Killua just smirked at it, making all of the others wonder about what they were talking about.

"Oh, sorry. That didn't come out right," he rested his elbow in the desk. "I'm not talking about a crazy gamble. In fact, I can guarantee they will be healed. Let us take care of this," he narrowed his eyes, in confidence. "This method isn't as risky as using a Nen exorcist. But the problem is how we can get there. This time, that will be the biggest challenge."

"Wh-What do you-?"

Killua opened his eyes when Morel's voice died down, startling Hitomi. Worried, she made her way towards him and placed her ear close to the phone, to hear as well.

"Forgive me, Killua-sama," a voice spoke.

"Is that you, Gotoh?" Killua recognized him.

Yeah, Hitomi remembered him too... and she wasn't that glad about it.

"I can't let you continue that conversation, on the grounds of secrecy."

"I didn't tell him anything secret!" the boy shouted at the phone.

"Not true. You said you could guarantee they would be healed. That was a reference to Alluka-sama's power," the butler replied. "At the moment, you are still just within Zoldyck property, but outside the boundaries, you are already at alert level 4, so please be careful."

 _"So he was waiting for me to give Morel a hint?"_ he then smirked as Hitomi blinked, "You're too easy on me, Gotoh."

"I do not understand what you mean."

 _"Level 4..."_ Killua's eyes narrowed. _"Looks like I pissed off my father."_

Unable to get anything out of the conversation, Hitomi turned to Zebro. He looked at her intense gaze and blinked.

"Hey, old man," she called. "Do you happen to know what in the whole Earth is that 'level 4' thing... Because now I'm starting to think that Killua is some kind of Pokemon with an attack called Thunderbolt and had just leveled up..."

The gatekeeper, however, gasped after hearing the words 'level 4' for some reason.

"Well, you see... There are alert levels when a member of the Zoldyck family is outside. When one's outside alert level is 4, restrictions are placed upon what the target can do and say," he explained to her. "To enforce that, multiple butlers and family members are assigned to monitor the target."

"That's ridiculous..." she mumbled, before shaking it off. "But... What happens if he broke a restriction?"

"He'd be captured right away and returned home... and I guess they would kill you as well," he explained. "The alert level then would increase to level 5, in which at the moment a single step is taken outside Zoldyck property, the target is captured."

Hitomi rolled her eyes... And she thought that the Elder was annoyingly strict with the rules back at her childhood...

"What's the reason?" Killua asked.

"The reasons are unauthorized removal of a classified object, bringing an outsider inside the house, rebelling against your parents and use of threatening actions."

"Alluka is an object?!"

"There are three restrictions. Please, keep in mind that the first and the last one also apply Hitomi-sama," Gotoh ignored him. "First, to protect family secrets the target may not speak to or exchange items with any outsiders without enforce this, the target is forbidden to carry any communicacion devices."

"We've already had everything taken away."

"Second, to protect family secrets, the target must stay within one meter of Alluka-sama all times."

"Yeah, yeah. I don't plan on letting her out of my sight."

"Wait a minute. Don't you think that rule a little too far?" Hitomi jumped in the conversation. "Humans can see a maximum of 5 km... So why only a freaking meter? Think about it! Alluka is a girl and Killua isn't! Don't you think that she need a little more of privacity-?"

Killua's killer glare was enough shut her up.

"And as I were saying..." Gotoh continued. "Third, to protect the family secrets, you are forbidden from letting any outsiders learn anything about Alluka's power."

The boy just released a long sigh of annoyment. "I understand perfectly," he spoke. "So basically..."

Somehow, the three ended up standing next to Kanaria and Gotoh. Hitomi raised an eyebrow at the boy, noticing that he was smirking victoriously while holding his sister's hand.

"This is what I have to do. This way, I don't have to ask permission every time I do something," Killua declared. "While we're traveling, I'll let you handle _all_ the arrangements!"

"I understand why I am here," Gotoh glanced at Kanaria by the corner of his eye. "But why is Kanaria here?"

A finger pointed at him, but he didn't seem moved at it at all.

"Moron! Alluka is a girl. I can't trust a lump like you to take care of her!" then, this thumb pointed at his female friend, who was standing right next to Alluka. "The closest thing to a girl is that tomboy over there... That's not a lot of help..."

"Ah, is that so?" a vein popped up in Hitomi's head. "Sorry for not being as girly as you, Miss Killua..."

It didn't look like he heard her, though. That only helped in making Hitomi even angrier, annoyment boiling in her blood.

"There is nothing to worry about," they all turned to the sudden voice. "We shall also accompany you. Silva-sama did not believe that two butlers would be enough."

Hitomi looked at the pair and noticed how Killua tensed at the sight. Walking towards them was a pretty but serious girl - who reminded the Kuruta of Illumi, in a way - and a _tall,_ scary-looking old woman with glasses.

"Tsubone!" Killua was surprised. He took a step back as she stood in front of him. _"Dad is really pissed..."_

The girl just looked at the drop of sweat rolling down the ex-assassin's cheek, thoughtlessly taking his hand, to give him a little of comfort at least...

And to comfort herself as well... She couldn't remember the last time she was that scared of life...

"It's fine," Killua smiled, nervously. "I won't do anything stupid at alert level 4."

"Listen to me, Killua-chan," the woman spoke. "I'm not as lenient as your father and Gotoh. A single violation means that I'll take you home and kill your friend. Nothing will change that. If you resist, I'll knock you out. Keep that in mind. Are we clear?"

"Yes! Yes!" he nodded, really tense.

Hitomi blinked a little, before turning to Kanaria.

"Did she call him-?"

"Yes," she replied, a little tense as well. "To be honest, Tsubone-sensei is the only person in the entire household who calls him 'Killua-chan'."

"Eh?" she smirked at Tsubone. "Looks like she has some reputation here..."

That was when Alluka stood in front of her brother, stretching her arms protectively at her sides with a frown in her face.

"No bullying Big brother!"

Tsubone's face changed, now she was smiling at the little girl warmly, like a grandmother would do with her granddaughter... What a change of character...

"I'm sorry. Alluka-chama is so kind I won't do it again."

"I just realized something..." Killua mumbled to his friend. "I have trouble dealing with old ladies..."

"Just now?" Hitomi taunted. "You are pointing the obvious, though..."

For the eleventh time of the day, he glared at her. Meanwhile, Tsubone kneeled down next to Alluka.

"Do you love your big brother?" she asked.

"I love him lots!" Alluka exclaimed, raising her hand happily.

"Then you should do as he says."

"Okay!"

Hitomi couldn't help but chuckle at the cute scene, but winning the old woman's attention. She tensed, blushing a little at the sudden attention.

"Oh, my, so it's you?" the blonde girl blinked at her words. Tsubone turned to Killua. "You finally got a girlfriend? You are lucky, Killua-chan, she is really pretty."

A beat later, the pair of faces were on fire. They looked wide-eyed at the old butler and tensed a little.

"We're not together!" they shouted at the same time.

"Is that so?" she said, in a sing-song voice. "Then, why are you both still holding hands? You too are really cute."

Killua and Hitomi looked at each other, and then at their wrapped hands. They snapped them away, before glaring at each other.

"What were you doing, pervert?!" she shouted at him.

"Me?! You were the one who did it!" he shouted back.

"It was... It was... It wasn't me!" she couldn't find the words to answer.

"It was!"

"It wasn't!"

"It was!

"Right! Let's just pretend that it _was_ me..." she went on, seriously. "Then, why didn't you let go of it?"

He was taken away. Alluka looked at both of them who were arguing, like it was a tennis match.

"Because... Because..." he started to think of an excuse. "Because I didn't notice when you did it!"

"Until now?"

"Yeah..."

She grinned. She was winning this.

"Then, how can you prove it wasn't you?" Killua frowned at her words. "You could have been the one who did that, without even realizing it."

"It could've been you as well."

"Yeah, but no one will ever know. It's my word against yours, but I still won this match."

Killua opened his mouth, but no word came. He looked away as Hitomi held her fingers in a 'V' shape, meaning that she had won that one.

"Tsubone!" all of sudden, Alluka held her hands to the woman. "Give me the nail of your pinky."

The two females were the only one who remained without changing their expression. Hitomi and Killua stopped they quarrel. As well as the other butlers, they looked at the scene in pure shock.

 _"She made a request to Tsubone!"_ Killua cursed. _"This is the worst time for it!"_

 _"A fingernail? What does Nanika want to do with it?!"_ Hitomi wondered. _"Okay, now I'm starting to think that she is indeed a little creepy..."_

"Yes, absolutely," Tsubone replied without a second thought.

Hitomi looked in disgust as the woman took her nail off with her own hand and handed it to the girl. She still couldn't get how come Alluka - or Nanika, she didn't know - was that happy to have a bloody nail in her hands. Cute gift indeed.

"Killua-sama, I will go into hiding for the time being," she stood up to leave. "This means that Alluka-sama will not make requests of anyone else. Unless I change my mind. Do you get what I mean? Of course, I will remain near you at all times."

In a blink of eye, Tsubone had magically disappeared. Hitomi took a step ahead, but she then noticed the old woman was already gone. Killua, at the same time, bit his lip in frustration.

"Big brother," Alluka tugged her brother's sleeve. "Are you angry?"

He looked at her, before smiling warmly. He shook his head and then placed a hand over her own.

"It's okay. There's nothing for you to worry about," he assured her and she grinned. _"I will save you!"_

Hitomi grinned at the sight. She felt about interrupting it, but they had to go now.

"Well then, we have to go," she grinned. "Let's go, Alluka, Killua-chan."

"Okay!"

"... Killua-chan?..."

* * *

 _Ring, ring, ring..._

Hitomi looked over Gotoh who had just picked up Killua's cell phone. Right after that, she looked through the window to do whatever but pay attention to the conversation. She was kind of curious, but she had to resist the tentation.

"... In that case, you should state your name first," she heard Gotoh saying. "Goodbye."

Killua glanced at the butler as he cut the line off.

"Who was that?" he asked.

"It was-"

 _Ring, ring, ring..._

"Hello?" he picked up.

"MY NAME IS LEORIO!" even Hitomi could heard from where she was sitting, next to Amane and Alluka. "Can you put Killua or Hitomi on the phone?!"

On the other side of the phone, poor Senritsu had to cover her ears because of the loud voice. Kurapika shook his head while Morel told him to shut up.

Meanwhile, the three stayed in silence. Gotoh held the phone meters away from his ear, trying to not get a ear injury. Wise guy he was...

Hitomi, though, couldn't believe it... How come Alluka looked like she wasn't able to heard anything at all?

 _"Wow, that brings back memories!"_ Killua thought, looking blankly at the butler.

"It has been quite some time, Leorio-sama," Gotoh said.

Hitomi chuckled.

"It was about time for someone to call him 'Leorio-sama'..." she mumbled. "Well, good thing we didn't start a fight like last time..."

"What fight?" Killua was confused.

"... Ah, right. You weren't in the ship with us..." she scratched the back of her head. "You see... Long, boring story."

Alluka just blinked, not understanding a word of it.

"Oh! I remember!" they heard Leorio clearly. "It's the coin guy!"

"Killua-sama and his friend are currently on they way there, accompanied by us... Yes, to help Gon-sama and Kurapika-sama. However, there are strict conditions that must be met."

"Hey, there!" Leorio was angry. "Conditions to save their friends? Are you dreaming? If you need help waking up, I'll speak more loudly!"

Kurapika blinked. "Friends?"

Senritsu didn't say anything about it. That was right, he wasn't aware that they wanted to heal him too. She then frowned, still worried. It looked like she was the only one to notice something more that was wrong about him...

But she wasn't going to tell him. It could only worsen his condition.

"Keep your mouth shut," Gotoh spoke.

"What did you say?!"

"Killua-sama and his friend are risking their lives," Leorio tensed at the statement. "They're heading to you, against Killua-sama's family's wishes. You should know that the Zoldyck family is very special. We are the ones who set the conditions. So shut up and listen, fool."

Hitomi's head snapped at him, since it was the first time she heard Gotoh insulting someone. Killua looked at him, smirking a little, as the butler let his head drop.

"Please excuse me," he said.

"Don't worry," Hitomi smirked. "The old guy deserved it..."

"YOU BRAT! You deserve a good kick as well!" she heard Leorio shout. "I'm aware of you running away from the hospital before they let you go!"

"Who told you tha-?" Kurapika's face then popped up in her head. "... Forget it... But my hands are healed and I feel fine. Not a big deal..."

Killua's head snapped at her, glaring at her. He was worried, that's right, but angry with her as well. Hitomi on the other hand, placed her hands behind her head.

"Too late," she grinned.

The male Zoldyck then turned to his butler.

"Let me talk to him. It'll be faster that way," Gotoh looked at him. "Don't worry, I won't say anything I'm not supposed to. One violation means that she's dead and I'll sent home, right?"

Like that, Gotoh had no more option than give him the phone.

"Yo, it's been a while," he said.

"Killua!" Leorio shouted. "When you get here, let me talk to that guy! Are you two okay?!"

"Yeah, but I can't say anything specific. I need you to trust me. Do as Gotoh says."

Leorio released a long sigh.

"Yeah, got it. Put him back on," he gave up right to feel a tap on his shoulder. He looked at his right to see that it was Morel, grinning.

"I'll ask about the conditions," the man said. "Let me talk."

"Uh... Morel-san, was it?" Leorio said, annoyed. "This is _my_ phone, and I'm talking to _my_ buddy, so why should I let _you_ talk?"

"An excellent question," he continued. "The answer is to give me the phone."

"No way," Leorio snapped his hand away. "Get lost."

"Very well. Then, I have a favor to ask," Morel held his hands up on defense. "My guess is that you'll say, 'That isn't possible'. In which case, you should hand over the phone. Because I can make it possible."

Leorio gave the man a long look, before sighing in surrender. On the other side of the phone, Hitomi crossed her arms in front of her chest, narrowing her eyes in wonder.

She thought about all the conditions to let Alluka touch Gon... She knew that if they made her touch Kurapika as well it would be another long trouble she didn't want Killua and his sister to deal with...

Hitomi suddenly was hit by an idea. It wouldn't work with Gon... but it was possible that worked with Kurapika. After all, there was no limit about the wishes you could ask to Nanika, right?

It was worth of trying.

"I've an idea. We don't have to have Alluka to touch Kurapika as well. We can save that problem," she smirked. They all looked at her, in confusion and Killua frowned. "Don't worry, Killua, just trust me."

Just by looking at her eyes, Killua knew that he had just to let it go. Gotoh stared at her for a few minutes as well, before talking to Leorio again. They spoke about the conditions.

"We have Kurapika-sama's part already covered. So, let's start with the conditions to heal Gon," he spoke. "When we arrive, there must be no one inside the building except Gon-sama."

"Not even doctors?" Leorio questioned.

"Correct."

"Or any other patients?"

"Correct."

"THAT ISN'T POSSIBLE!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

Kurapika had to cover his ears to avoid getting totally deaf. The headache he had been dealing with all the day only worsened at his loudness. By the corner of his eye noticed Senritsu grimacing in pain while covering her ears... He somehow felt sorry for her.

"This is a national hospital!" he continued yelling.

"Don't you think that's enough reason to be a _little_ less loud," Kurapika mumbled, but was ignored.

"Do you have any idea how many people are in here?!"

Morel stretched his hand at him, and the other second he was the one discussing about the conditions. After finishing, he asked the young doctor to make another call. Maybe, he was calling Knov.

Meanwhile, Kurapika felt a stinging pain in his heart. He tried to pass unnoticed, but a yelp managed to get out his lips, it was so faint but loud enough to the Musical Hunter to hear. She turned around just to see the boy clutching his chest in silence.

"Kurapika?" the woman called in worry. His eyes flew opened in surprise after hearing his name. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah," he smiled, still in pain. He withdrew his hand from his chest. "It's just... I'm just tired, that's all."

Senritsu then frowned. Her hunch, which had transformed into suspicion, had just turned into certainty. Something worse than they thought was happening to Kurapika, and it would soon provoke his death.

At the same time, Morel gave the phone back to Leorio.

"Morel, I'll let you handle all contact with Killua," he spoke.

"Yeah, I've got it," the older Hunter replied.

After all, he started to walk away.

"What are you going to do, Leorio?" Kurapika asked.

"There is a person I need a word with," that was his only answer.

Leorio closed the word behind himself and Senritsu clenched her fists. Morel and Kurapika suddenly turned to her as she stood up dramatically.

"What are you doing?" the blond boy asked.

She couldn't bear it anymore. Just looking at her friend's blue orbs, the circles under them getting larger and larger, her worry increased. It pained her way a lot.

"It's just I remembered something," she told them, bursting out the room. "It's just a minute!"

Kurapika and Morel then blinked at each other, confusing at her actions. Senritsu, on the other hand, ran desperately through the halls, until she spotted her target.

"Leorio!" he turned around after hearing his name.

The man was confused, as he looked at her panting. He didn't remember last time he saw her that desperate over something he didn't know.

"Senritsu, what-?" he couldn't end his question.

"Something is bad with Kurapika!" she cut him off.

He looked at the floor.

"Yeah, I kno-"

"No, you don't know!" he was surprised at her outburst.

Senritsu then calmed down. The worry in Leorio increased as well, as he looked at her eyes. It gave him a terrible feeling.

"It's just..." she searched for the correct words to say it.

"What's wrong?"

Senritsu swallowed hard.

"I can't hear Kurapika's heart at all."

Leorio gaped in shock. He tried to speak, but his throat was strangled and his mouth felt dry all of sudden.

Without them knowing, another person was sitting in the next corner. After hearing the shocking news, his castle of cards crumbled and fell in the floor. His blue eyes narrowed, trying to hear the rest of the conversation.

 _"That's bad..."_ he started to build his castle again. _"If things keep going like this, I'm going to... run out of toys..."_

And then, the castle of cards fell again.

* * *

End of the chapter! Sorry I was that late!

First of all, I wanted to tell you that I have a Deviantart account now! If you go there (I wrote it in my profile) you will find my first try of drawing Hitomi... Just saying, if she was real she would have killed me right now... She looked decent in my head but... Let's just say that art is not my strong point at all -_-'...

Let's move to friendlier matters... Reviews!

 **Guest (first one):** Well... Here is you update! Thanks for the review and I hope you liked it :)

 **JokeLover123:** I think Kurapika's personallity would be like this if he forgot about revenge, that's why he is less emo like you said (I hope he doesn't act _that_ OOC...) Thank you for the review and I hope you enjoyed this chapter :)

 **Have:** Yeah, I have heard about that theory too in a lot of places, and in my opinion is the most accurrate one... Well, anyway, she is going to be called a girl whichever is the reason he did that XD Thanks for the review! Hope you liked this update :D

 **Kri:** It's a miracle that Hitomi is still alive... Just telling you, major fluff will come next chapter ( I don't know how it would end up being but... Oh well) XD Anyway, thank you for leaving me a review and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

 **SoulXHunter:** Actually, you can say that they are aware of that, but they are focused in Gon and Kurapika more (just like Killua in the anime). Fluff it's coming next chapter so let's hope it doesn't turn that lame XD Well, thanks for the review! I wish you liked it :D

 **Guest (second one):** Well, just hearing that soundtrack makes me cry. You know, I'm a fan of the 1999 OST, but that one is just awesome and beautiful! Anyway, I'm glad you liked that I added Kurapika there. I mean, I thought it wouldn't be the best choice to break the canon like that, but I always wanted him to be shown more often and I couldn't help myself XD Thank you for the review! Hope you enjoyed this chapter!

 **Elisablackcat:** Alluka is here :D Thanks for leaving a review and I hope you liked this update!

 **Mr. Kohen:** Thanks for both reviewing and wishing me luck! Lucklily, I did well :D I'm happy you liked last update and I hope you like this one!

 **Silent Readers:** Thank you for the visit! Have fun :D

See you all later!


	39. Pennywise x Heartless Boy x Realization

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( Sadly, I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 39: Pennywise Attacks x The Heartless Boy x Sudden Realization**

"What the-?!" Hitomi's eyes were open in full capacity. "Leorio in third place?!"

"That's incredible..." Killua mumbled.

They were all checking in a tablet the Hunter site, to have news about how the Chairman Elections were going on. Certainly, the picture of Leorio being the Chairman had never crossed their mind until now... They just didn't know what to think about that.

"YOU CAN GO TO HELL!"

Hitomi looked at the video Killua found and couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of Leorio using his Nen ability to punch Gon's father, Ging, in the jaw.

"I guess this clip had a big impact," Killua mumbled.

"I can see why," the girl snickered a little more. "Looks like our little Leorio-chan can use Nen perfectly now, and that he turned to be an Emitter."

The boy nodded, raising an eyebrow. "And that he has no problem using his Nen in front of a crowd..."

"So true... At least we can say that he isn't shy at all..."

They replayed the video again, and this time the Kuruta was able to hold her laugh.

"So do people dislike Gon's dad?" the boy wondered.

"It looks like it. There was a standing ovation there," Hitomi smirked. "It looks like I was right after all. Ging is just an idiot and Gon got in all the trouble of taking the Exam to meet him... And it indirectly drove him to his close-to-death state."

That was when Killua's phone rang. Gotoh picked up right away and there was a beat until he said something.

"Illumi-sama," he spoke to the phone.

A shiver travelled down Hitomi's spine, that name was the last one she wanted to hear around. Amane and Killua tensed as well as Alluka just blinked in confusion, ignorant of the thick tension in the place.

"... Yes, at once. Please, wait a moment," Gotoh then handed Killua the phone.

Hitomi then looked at Amane. Her tensed state made her understand everything, as well as Killua had. The Zoldyck Family's correlation chart surrounding Alluka was crystal clear now to both of them.

 _"Despite what he says, Silva trusts Killua, and that's the reason he let Gotoh and me accompanying him, instead of forcing him to stop. However, he still doesn't trust his daughter power at all. It makes sense, one wrong move and it's goodbye to the entire Zoldyck Family,"_ Hitomi analyzed. _"But he also wants to control Alluka, reason of which he just locked her up in a room with countless toys. He also made Tsubone and Amane, who look like his most trusted butlers, go with us so they can stop everything if something happens. That old woman looks like she can kill me in a flash... They, then, will take Killua and Alluka back home immediately. And Silva hopes that they'll glean some hint that helps him controlling his own daughter as a bonus."_

She looked at Amane. Hitomi was sure that they were being cautious, unlike Kanaria and Gotoh, who were at their side.

 _"And to mess things up even more..."_ she remembered. _"There's also Illumi."_

 _"The moment that Gotoh said his name, Amane's tension spiked,"_ Killua looked at his phone. _"This means Amane and Tsubone, and Father and Grandpa by extension, disagree with Illumi."_

It looked like Gotoh played good. If Tsubone had been there, she would have either distracted them or told Amane to shut her feelings off, after seeing the male butler's reaction.

Hitomi quickly got it by just looking at her friend's face: That was an internal family struggle she couldn't get her nose in.

Killua also knew it; that was an inner mission.

 _"They definitely aren't an united family at all, which makes logical to think that when they differ in opinion or objective, they won't sat around a table to talk about it like a real family and unite in the same goal. They do things their own way. This is a contest!"_ the girl concluded. _"Silva, and probably his father, want Alluka close to them, in their hands, to control her. But at the same time, they don't want Killua hurt by her..."_

 _"... I want to save Gon and Kurapika, and to set Alluka free while keeping Hitomi alive..."_ Killua continued his thoughts.

 _"... But the most terrifying thing is what Illumi wants..."_

They passed through a tunnel, Alluka's face popping up in Killua's mind.

 _"... He wants to kill Alluka!"_ the boy reached the conclusion.

Hitomi frowned, while looking at the smiling Alluka. She couldn't help but wince at the thought of someone wanting to kill his own little sister.

"You removed the needle, didn't you?" Illumi's voice was what Killua heard from the speaker.

"Yeah," he replied, coldly. "I feel a lot better."

"Then I won't have to hold back when I kill you."

"Kill? Me?"

The Kuruta tensed at the words of the albino. She had a bad feeling about it.

"You can't kill family members during an inner mission," Illumi then laughed. _"Family_ is off limits."

Killua lost it completely at that moment. Hitomi flinched slightly when she felt his bloodlust and looked at him. His face had darkened dramatically and his pupils had dilated.

"Hey, hey. Isn't this part great?" Alluka turned to Hitomi, smiling brightly while showing her something in her tablet. "Why is this story so mysterious?"

"Yeah... It's fantastic..." she mumbled, forcing herself to take her sight out of Killua and smile to the little girl.

Meanwhile, said boy gritted his teeth. He remembered his father saying something about Alluka not being part of the family.

 _"Is that what Father meant?"_ he tightened his grasp on the phone. _"They're all thinking the same thing!"_

 ** _CRACK!_**

A cold drop of sweat ran down Hitomi's temple. She slowly looked up to see that the phone in his hand had just cracked because the pressure the boy made on it.

 _"For goodness sake, don't do anything foolish..."_ she prayed and prayed...

But...

"Fine," Killua said in a dark voice. "I'll beat you at your own game."

The girl's face fell. That was bad.

"Then, let's begin," Illumi called.

 ** _BOOM!_**

Just before he said that, a truck appeared from nowhere and send the car in front of them flying. Kanaria, who was driving at the moment, reacted quickly enough to avoid it, even if it meant driving the wall.

"Killua!" Hitomi shouted, throwing Alluka at his arms.

"She's right! Killua-sama, don't let go of Alluka-sama!" Gotoh shouted as well. "If you two are more than a meter apart, Amane will capture Alluka-sama and Tsubone will take you home by force just after killing your friend!"

He nodded, hugging her tightly as Kanaria continued avoiding more and more cars being charged at them. Hitomi watched their car jumping in the air just to meet a truck charging a lot of large, metal beams. They fell right in front of it.

The two vehicles hit each other, the impulse sending the beams right to them, going across the car like knives.

"Watch out!"

Hitomi pushed the siblings out the way. In the process, she ended up injuring her left arm. She couldn't help but yelp in pain at it.

"Are you-?!" Killua was worried.

"Don't!" she cut him off, grabbing her bleeding arm. "Don't worry about me! Protect your sister!"

Reluctantly, Killua nodded and embraced Alluka tighter. Not paying attention at her was hard.

The car started to fall down the cliff, and Hitomi feared what was next. Just meters before hitting the floor, she used her Nen to break the roof of the car.

"Do any of you like free falling?" she joked.

Killua jumped first, while holding her sister by her waist and grabbed himself in a branch of a tree. The butlers managed to do so as well but in Hitomi's case, she didn't have such a luck. She missed the branch, painfully failing in the ground and rolling on it.

But at least they all missed being hurt by the explosion.

After then, they all landed in the ground, just looking at the girl who had her face still pressed against the floor. Killua chuckled, cat ears popped up, at the sight of her. All the others, though, just blinked.

Hitomi's body shook in rage, not taking her face out from the ground. It hurted. A lot.

She finally glared at the sky, her face full of dirt.

"DAMN YOU, ILLUMI!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. The sound echoed in all the forest and more.

In another cliff, two young men were standing, looking at the fire from the explosion. One of them released an amused smirk after hearing the female shouting.

"Oh, dear. Looks like someone is angry with you~!" the magician told the other one, who was shaking a little out of irritation, despite not being able to change his face.

"She will never die, will she?" he whispered.

Hisoka smirk widened and crouched, holding his hand in front of him in order to see better.

"That was excessive," he commented. "I thought you were going to ask him first."

"I have a little bird who brings me information, and after examining it, there's something that bothers me," Illumi told him. "Killua is hiding rules from us. If there are rules I don't know about, trying to negotiate with him is pointless. He might accede to my demands because they favor him."

The magician just looked at him.

"So I'll dispose of Alluka before he has a chance to use that advantage," Illumi continued. "I just need you to eliminate the butlers and Hitomi... Don't let that girl live. Then, look for a chance to take Alluka from Killua. For now."

"Okay," Hisoka then turned to Illumi. "By the way, am I allowed to kill Killua?"

That was the first time ever that Illumi showed any emotion. His eyes opened dramatically as the wind blew his hair away, enraged at the thought.

"I will... kill you... Right here... Right now," he pronounced.

"I was kidding~!" Hisoka grinned, before tilting his head at him. "You're oozing bloodlust. Is that alright?"

Illumi froze there, snapping out his anger. He looked in panic at the place he supposed that Killua was.

"Oh, damn," the Zoldyck turned to Hisoka, an eyebrow raising out of annoyment. "Was that on purpose?"

"Certainly not."

That was enough to convince Illumi and Hisoka was glad of it.

 _"I don't want to kill Hitomi just yet... If at all possible, I'd like Kurapika, Gon and her to live,"_ he thought. _"Having more toys is always more amusing... Well, only if it's possible."_

* * *

"Try to stay away from Illumi-sama," Amane told Killua. "If he knows the route we're taking, it's best to change directions."

Hitomi had quickly stood up in her feet after feeling exactly what Killua felt, Illumi's bloodlust. The boy told his sister to hold herself tightly on him, just before they all started running, opposite of the direction where they felt the older Zoldyck.

"I concur, but..." the boy admitted. "It's hard to me to agree with you."

"My grandmother and I are not your enemies," she said.

"Not right now. But that could change if my father's mood changes."

"Silva-sama and Zeno-sama are not your enemies. Our mission is to bring you home safely, Killua-sama."

At the statement, Killua stopped running. They all turned to him, as he went in his Godspeed mode. Hitomi flinched... she was scared of what he was going to do...

"If that doesn't include Alluka, you're all enemies!"

And in a blink of eye, he was gone. Hitomi growled slightly and used her own Nen to run away after him, managing to lose the other butlers as well.

But the girl ended up losing him at the same time.

 _"I know I told you that I could take care of myself... but this is too much! Damned Zoldycks!"_

* * *

Hitomi had to stop running because of the lack of air.

Panting like she was going to die of low oxygen, the girl leaned against the nearest tree, her chest rising and falling, and her heart beating like mad at the point of hurting her. She had her hand placed in her still bleeding arm, which annoyed her the most.

And the worst part was that she still wasn't able to find Killua.

"Come on, Hitomi," she smacked herself. "You _can't_ lose a boy with totally white hair in the forest when he is shining in the brightest shade of blue!"

She took a step ahead but then froze. An eerie feeling tensed her body as a shiver went down her spine. She stood still, in anticipation.

Her eyes narrowed, looking at her surroundings carefully. They shone in a brighter red color.

"I know there's someone there, show yourself!" she shouted at the person she couldn't see. "Who is it?"

Hitomi heard the bushes behind her and steps coming closer.

"A magician who wishes to stay anonymous," the voice said.

Slowly, the girl turned around and narrowly dodged something that came towards her, scratching her cheek, maybe a knife. She found it strange when she saw a card stabbed in the nearest tree instead.

Hitomi looked at the enemy and froze. There was, smirking in a sick way, a orange-haired young man, with his face all painted in bright colours.

"Hisoka?!" she was shocked.

The Kuruta girl reached into a conclusion of it really quickly. She was doomed.

"My, my... Looks like I won't stay anonymous anymore," he took a step closer, as the girl took one back in reflex. "Oh, dear. Are you scared of me?"

"I hadn't developed any kind of coulrophobia or similar yet, thank you very much."

"So, I will never look like anything that is not a clown to you, right?" Hitomi was surprised when she noticed four of his cards floating around his hands.

"Wait... Do they float?" she blinked but quickly felt really stupid and used Gyo, just to realize that it he was just using his Bungee Gum to spin them around.

"Oh, yes, they float. They all float," he grinned in a creepy way. "And soon you will float too~!"

One part of her wanted to facepalm while the other wanted to get away from there, to find Killua and Alluka for once. Hisoka was damn scary.

She had no more time to think, because he swung his hand around and the cards got shot at her. Out of reflex, she jumped high to avoid them, but then she felt the pain.

On the other second, her face was pressed against the ground. She kept there for a second, feeling a warmth feeling rushing through her back like water.

 _"What the-?"_ she thought at the sight of blood in the floor. She reached at the place in pain and took off a card.

Using Gyo again concluded that she was inside some kind of Bungee Gum ring.

"I wasn't doing nothing when I followed you," his smirk widened. "In fact, I managed to hit you with the cards you just dodged by using my ability."

"Well, well," she stood up, smirking as well. "Looks like Penny _wise_ is a bit _wise_ after all."

Hisoka chuckled. "So I heard."

Hitomi stood still, slightly moving her hand so she could generate sonic waves from the bracelet. The magician looked in slight interest as the little girl got surrounded by her Nen, so it protected her like a shield.

His blue eyes looked at the red ones. Her Nen had gotten stronger than before, and it excited him a lot.

"Here we go!" the waves flew around her and the magician jumped in order to avoid being hit, just to find that Hitomi was now in the branch above him to land a punch.

He blocked the first one. He avoided the other punch and wrapped her leg with his Bungee Gum when she tried to land a kick.

 _"Shit!"_ she cursed in her head as he threw her by it and spun her around the place, with an amused smirk in his face. _"And that bastard is enjoying this!"_

She did her best to dodge the tree and managed to stand on it, an idea crossing her mind. Before Hisoka could pull at her, she leaped forward, in diagonal and so, in a matter of time the thread was tangled.

"Not bad," Hisoka had no more option but undo it.

"Thanks for the compliment."

When she, however, wanted to move, a wave of dizziness hit her. She stumbled back, hitting her back against the tree and placing her hand on her head, frowning in pain.

 _"What the hell is happening to me?!"_ she panicked, right after realizing that Hisoka couldn't hold his laugh anymore. _"What did he do to me...?"_

Hitomi's eyes opened after remembering something, reaching out the scratch of her cheek with her hand and touching it softly. She thought about the wounds of her back and winced.

"The way you are looking at me tells me that you noticed," he walked closer, and she tensed visibly. "It took less to take effect than I supposed."

"So..." she gasped for air. "So you poisoned me?"

"It was wise, too," he showed his card at her. "Don't you think?"

Hitomi flinched, as she did her best to avoid another strike coming her way.

 _"Damn, it's spreading through my body fast... Mostly because I'm too small... I'm lucky, it doesn't seem to be lethal..."_ she bended, dodging a card. _"But I still can't afford being hit again. Increasing the dose is a big no-no..."_ she jumped, avoiding being hit again.

She bit her lip, panting audibly.

But she knew better, she was a goner already. Every step, made her mouth dry even more. Every jump, made her heart beat even faster. Man, even blinking made her feel more and more tired.

"Behind you, Apple-chan~!"

Her eyes opened in shock, as she did her best to turn around. A card made a huge gash in her belly, right before the magician's knee hit her right into the stomach. The air left her lungs suddenly when she hit the floor, meters away from him.

Hitomi tried to stand up, looking at the clown coming her way. She tried stand still, but her legs quickly gave up, unable to support her own weight anymore. She kept there, kneeling in the floor.

 _"N-No way..."_ she coughed some blood. _"Strength is... leaving my body..."_

She fell once again, and she grimaced over the fact she had just fallen in her injured arm. Little before that, it became one of her last problems...

Her gaze was getting blurrier...

Damn, even her eyelids were heavier than before...

Hisoka stood in front of her, and Hitomi only managed to move her eyes at him. He was holding a card and grinning... She wasn't able to move...

"Sweet dreams," his voice looked far away from her.

She finally closed her eyes, in surrender, accepting her cruel fate. Slowly, consciousness left Hitomi alone with that murderer.

* * *

Kurapika just sighed, looking at the white ceiling while leaning on the bed, Leorio reading some magazine at his side. He once complained about the pervert themes his companion was looking at, but after a while he shook it off. There were a few facts way more important in his mind to worry about that.

"Leorio?" he caught his attention.

"Hmm?" his gaze was still fixed in the magazine. Kurapika looked at his face and shook his head in a disapproving way. He was visibly blushing...

Well, it didn't matter. His bright blue eyes looked at the spot of the ceiling he was looking at before, absentmindedly.

"I'm going to die, aren't I?"

Leorio's glasses almost dropped from his head, as he quickly caught them. The future doctor quickly looked at his friend and winced. He expected him to look a little... more afraid. It wasn't that he looked happy either...

It was like he didn't care about it.

It was a little scary.

Leorio wondered how had he noticed that, remembering the events that happened since Killua and Hitomi departed to look for the way to heal them both.

Nothing really, just the usual... What he predicted. After realizing that, indeed, the boy had not a heart, his health worsened even more. He fainted once, scaring him to death. When he woke up, Leorio was relieved...

But now, Kurapika was growing weaker, and was bedridden.

As all the people around them hoped for the young Hunters to come there as quick as possible.

"What are you talking about?" he pretended to grin. "Even coming from an emo like you, it's kind of unusual, isn't it?"

The older one expected to be hit when he ruffled his friend's blond hair, but there was no reaction. He didn't even look at him as he narrowed his eyes.

"I'm not an idiot, Leorio. I know my body, and I know the restriction I broke... It's even a miracle that I'm breathing right now," he spoke. "And I know that well... Whatever is happening to me, there's no cure..." he smirked at himself. "Looks like, in the end, I'm not better than Gon..."

Both males fell silent for a while. Leorio's face went serious as he released a long sigh, knowing from beforehand that it was just useless to lie to Kurapika.

He placed his hands over the young boy's shoulders.

"Listen, Kurapika, I need you to forget all of this... And keep happy thoughts. You'll be alright..." Leorio spoke, the last part rather to convince himself. "I need you to stay strong... until Killua and Hitomi arrive... They will definitely heal you up."

That was the only time Kurapika showed any emotion, as he shot up from his bed in pure shock about what he had heard.

"Hey!" Leorio tried to put him down. "Don't stress yourself!"

"It doesn't matter!" he shouted. "What did you say?! I thought they were only going to heal Gon!"

"Well, actually... They went to heal you too..."

Kurapika clutched the sheets beneath his hands. The thought of Killua and his own sister dying to help him... To summarize everything, it wasn't a pretty picture for him at all.

"Who told... Hitomi about me?" he asked softly.

"No one, really. She figured it out for herself," Leorio scratched the back of her neck. "You should know that you are a terrible liar... Now, just... Just lie down."

Kurapika had no more option but do as Leorio told him to. For the eleventh time of the time, looked at the roof and released a long sigh. He shifted in the bed, his back facing his friend, bringing his covers close to his body.

 _"I have a bad feeling about this..."_ he frowned. _"Killua... Hitomi... Just be careful."_

* * *

 _"Hitomi... Just be careful..."_ the words echoed in her mind, as she desperately fought to regain consciousness.

Hisoka, on the other hand, just stood in front of her unconscious form, tightly holding a card in his hand. That was the moment. Everything would end there, in the next second.

But... Why was he hesitating? It certainly wasn't his first kill.

Maybe, it was for the match they had. Sure, she hadn't even landed a hit on him, but she had just shown some promise... She was someone who was in the verge of getting at her top strength.

Probably, that was the reason. Hisoka didn't want to kill her just yet.

He then made up his mind and tried to strike her, just to stab the ground. He looked, amusingly, at the female who had rolled in the floor just in time to avoid the final blow. Hitomi was looking at him, eyes wide and panting.

"Good morning," Hisoka grinned. "Slept well?"

"Well, they say that the best nap has a length of about twenty minutes, but it was just fine," she still had the energy enough to joke around. "I have the feeling that if I slept a second more, I would just pass away in my sleep, am I wrong?"

"Right," he looked at her. "Certainly right."

She tried to stand still, but she wavered a little. Hitomi bit her lip, she had to get ridden of that drowsiness. Now.

Hisoka stared at her eyes for a long time.

"Oh, my. That look is scaring me," he spoke. "Standing up even in that state... Well, what can I expect from a Manipulator?"

"What does my Nen type have to do with this?" she frowned.

"Didn't I tell you? My bad. One of a Manipulator's traits is to keep the people they love safe," he then counted. "In a matter like this, the ones you care that are affected... Let's see... Killua... his sister... Gon... your heartless brother..."

"Heartless?" she chuckled. "He can be one for sure, but I don't get what he did to you..."

"Huh~?" he laughed. "I meant it in a literal way."

Her eyes opened in both shock and confusion.

"What?" she whispered.

"You don't know? Well, it doesn't surprise me. I heard about it little ago," he told her. "Kurapika's heart is gone, physically."

Hitomi froze there out of shock, as she convinced herself that he was just lying. It just... it didn't make sense for her... Just...

Well, at least she _wanted_ to convince herself that it didn't make any sense, but in the end she couldn't help but think that it explained everything.

"Even Nen can keep people without heart alive," Hisoka explained. "It easy when you think about it, even a simple Manipulator can use their Nen to make the blood keep flowing and everything work perfectly."

Hitomi thought about that, she found confusing that her mother could use a Hatsu technique, when she didn't know about Nen all her life. But then again, death was able to make Nen stronger, so it shouldn't have been _that_ surprising.

Something was right, though. Whatever the Kuruta mother made to help his son, was becoming weaker, and he was dying.

Not only Kurapika, Gon was dying too because Nen as well, in a different way. Hitomi also thought about Killua and Alluka... Were they fine?

 _"I need to get to them as quick as possible... But I need to get rid of this clown... Somehow,"_ she thought, silently taking her knife out of her pocket. _"First I need to wake up... This is the fastest way I can think of."_

Hisoka looked in curiosity as the girl browsed the dagger and gripped it tightly. Nen didn't rushed out her body, as he was used to.

 _"She wants to take me down without even using her Nen?"_ he was confused. _"Wow, she is already out of her mind, it seems."_

"Here I go!" she shouted. The magician got ready for the strike. "Hisoka!"

But, the man got greatly surprised by her actions, though. Instead of charge at him, like he expected, she stabbed her own arm with her knife, biting her lip to hold a cry of pain back.

"What are you looking at?" she joked while grimacing. She took her bloody dagger out of her arm and smirked, still in pain. "You haven't seen a girl the right side of her mind self-injuring herself without a reason at all in your life?"

"Is that so~?" Hisoka grinned. "You look a little insane to me. Not more than me, though."

"Just a little, eh?" she ran to him. "At least I'm wide awake now!"

Hitomi disappeared in front of him and attacked by his back, just to have her fist blocked by him. Quickly, she swung her weapon around and managed to make a gash in Hisoka's shoulder.

The magician froze there, in shock, and Hitomi took advantage of that. She flipped in the air and stood back, waiting for his next move.

 _"Yay! I hit Hisoka!"_ she yelled in her head. _"I think that now I understand Gon's excitement when he punched him in the Heavens Arena..."_

But then, her happiness erased when he looked at the magician's expression and paled like a ghost. Hisoka had touched his blood with his fingers, and now he was liking it like a complete psychopath.

 _"Calm down... You can't kill her..."_ his eyes were completely dilated, and shone like a sick person. _"The fruit is not ready... Not yet... Need to calm down..."_

 _"It's exactly like when my brother fought him..."_ she realized, frowning at the sight.

Hitomi didn't know how much time passed since he started looking at her bright red eyes, but she somehow was feeling uneasy. After a long time, he broke eye-contact and laughed. That creepy laugh sent shivers down her spine.

"Now I understand, you are sharper than you look," Hisoka then said, still smiling in a scary way, winning a confused look from the girl. "The reason of you stabbing yourself."

"I thought we already stated that it was just to awake myself, in drastic way."

Hisoka chuckled once again, making Hitomi's muscles tense radically.

"Now I'm totally sure that you're not a Transmuter," he pointed at her. "You are a terrible liar."

That hit Hitomi hard, even more that it should have. It wasn't that she hadn't heard about it... it was the opposite. She had heard that about a dozen of times - the most of the times was Killua who told her that - and she was _just_ beginning to believe it.

Damn.

"You are trying to bleed the poison out, aren't you?" Hitomi frowned at it. "But it's kind of double edged sword, isn't it?"

"Shut up!"

Hitomi knew he was right, but didn't care. There was a huge risk in her move. True, she could take most of the poison out of her body, but there was a consequence that could be a problem... Blood loss. There was a matter of time until she felt the lack of blood in her system.

She was feeling better now, but it wouldn't last long. That was why she decided to end it as fast as possible.

 _"But there's a good thing about it,"_ she smirked. _"Hisoka still doesn't know that my actions had a third reason..."_

Pretending anger, she fired a couple of sonic waves at his way, which he dodged, before charging at him. They exchanged punches and kicks fast, but no one landed in the other. Hisoka was surprised at first.

Had her speed increased? No, it didn't... _He_ was slower than before.

When he realized his vision blurring for a few seconds, his eyes opened slightly. He remembered when she stabbed a dagger soaked in her own blood in his arm and finally got it.

 _"Her blood was poisoned. So, at that time, she poisoned me... The dose was small, but enough for slow my movements down, so she could stay at my speed..."_ he then smirked. _"My, my... Every second makes me hesitate even more my decision to kill her that soon..."_

"Tired already?" Hitomi asked, stepping back for a little. "Then, I will show you another new trick."

She stroke again, but not in the way he expected. She grabbed his wrist instead of punching. But what surprised Hisoka was that it suddenly started to burn at the touch, so even himself had to bit back a yelp of pain. Hitomi, smirking, grabbed his other arm and it pained him a lot too.

He pushed her back, and started to laugh like a maniac again, looking at his red wrist, full of nasty blisters.

 _"This girl is really interesting... But I have to endure,"_ her palm collided with his face, burning his cheek. _"... Resist..."_ she burnt his right arm. _"... Calm down..."_ and then, aimed for his eyes. _"... Wait..."_ without restraining himself anymore, he grabbed the girl by her neck. _"ENDURE!"_

Oozing bloodlust at his top point, he tightened his grasp on Hitomi, and she cried and howled in pain, frantically trying to break free from his iron grip. However, it all ended when the young Hunter started to melt, in his surprise, getting away from his hands.

Hisoka instantly turned around and spotted a shadow quickly getting away from his sight. He smirked at it.

 _"Oh, well. That saves me from all the trouble,"_ the magician decided to turn a blind eye. _"Since she is that unpredictable, it's not that unlikely that Illumi won't believe me when I tell him that she fooled me good and ran away without me noticing..."_ he started to walk at the opposite way. _"Anyway, he said that Killua had brought a couple of butlers, right?... That will be enough to entertain me for a little~!"_

* * *

 _"That's bad..."_ Killua looked over his shoulder, finding nothing. _"I think I got carried away and lost Hitomi as well... Let's hope she is okay."_

After a long time of running, the boy finally made a stop while carrying his little sister in his arms. He looked around and undid his Speed of Lightning, forcing himself to smile a bit.

"Okay! We should be far enough away to take a break," he spoke calmly, before slowly walking through the forest. _"I'd like to use Speed of Lightning to keep going, but to be safe, I should save my energy for getting into town. Also, if we keep going like this, there is a chance that Hitomi can catch with us. She should be faster than the others with her Nen."_

"Big brother?" Alluka broke her brother from his thoughts.

Killua looked at her by the corner of his eye. For the first time since they had started they run-away, she was looking straight at him with those big, innocent, blue eyes of her.

"Am I... a nuisance?" The boy stopped walking, turning his head towards the child in confusion by her words. "If I were gone, would everyone get along better?"

The male Zoldyck didn't answer for a while, slowly putting Alluka down. He then placed both hands in her shoulders, gazing at the ground.

"Alluka," he looked up at her, smiling warmly. "If I were the only person in the world who really loved you, would you be sad?"

For a few seconds, Alluka stared blankly at the whitehead. That was when her lips curved into a wide grin, looking like she was drunk in happiness.

"I'm so happy, I can't stop smiling!" she giggled cutely.

"Okay?" Killua hugged his sister tightly. "I'll _always_ be with you!" the kid wrapped her arms around him as well. "You don't need to worry about anyone else."

That was when he noticed something and narrowed his eyes.

 _"Someone is there. Is it Tsubone? Is it Illumi?"_ he thought.

Both siblings heard some leaves rustling and tensed, turning around to the source of the sound. There was someone in the shadows, standing over the branches. Killua placed a hand over Alluka's shoulder out of instinct. The person jumped down and stood in front of them.

But when he looked at his face, Killua relaxed considerably.

"That's bad, I thought you would be dead be dead now," the boy rolled her eyes. Hitomi scoffed in annoyment at his statement. "You're late, though."

"Oh, sorry for not being an albino version of Flash," Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Next time, run a little slower."

The Kuruta then noticed Alluka acting somehow awkwardly. She was standing slightly behind Killua, her left hand grabbing his shirt, looking at the older girl in a strange manner... No, it wasn't fear, Hitomi could tell.

She was keeping her distance to her, though.

"Hey, Killua," Hitomi turned to the boy. "Did you say something funny to your sister?"

"Well, not really, but..."

Hitomi looked at the girl for a while, and her gaze softened. With a sigh, she stood in front of her, bending slightly to be at her eye-level. She smiled kindly to the wary kid.

"Alluka, listen, because I'm not going to say this around often..." she gazed at the floor. "I'm sorry."

Killua was surprised about that, but didn't say anything at all.

"I noticed there's... an awkward distance between us, and I can't not help but think that it's my fault... because _it's_ my fault..." Hitomi released a friendly chuckle. "I never did anything to fix that... I guess that's because I'm a complete idiot who doesn't know how to socialize with new people," she scratched the back of her head. "But, even though I know you probably don't like me, I _do_ like you, so... Is there a way... to start over and be friends?"

Alluka didn't say anything for a long while, she just directed her gaze to the ground.

"Can you... tell me your name?" that took both Hunters aback. "You know... there is no way that anyone doesn't have a name... At that time, I accepted your choice of not letting me learn it. In fact, I know that Big brother didn't let you do that because it would hurt us both..." the female Zoldyck looked at her eyes. "But to be friends, I think we first have to know who we really are. So, can I know it?"

"Wait, Alluka-!" Killua tried to stop her.

"It's okay, Killua," Hitomi said, still looking at the little girl. "I want her to trust me as much as I trust her," she then smiled at the boy. "I want to do this."

The boy had no more option but stay out of this. The Kuruta looked back at Alluka, her grin still on, as she looked at her intensely.

"My name is Hitomi Kuruta," the girl spoke.

"I'm Alluka Zoldyck!" the younger one waved her hands around. "Nice to meet you!"

"I already know that."

"Don't be mean!" Alluka pouted. "You said that you wanted start over!"

"Right, right..." Hitomi chuckled. "Nice to meet you too."

Killua blinked at them, before releasing a smile. It was nice to see them that close now. "Girls..." he whispered with a sigh.

Hitomi then stood in her feet, when a wave of pain greeted her entire body, but forced herself to hide it. Her short grimace, however, didn't go unnoticed by the sharp-eyed Zoldyck, who narrowed his blue orbs at the sight of the wounds covering her body.

He, however, wondered how he didn't notice that sooner.

"What happened with you?" Killua asked.

"Oh, this," she looked at her body. "I stumbled across Pennywise, why?"

Alluka blinked in confusion while the boy raised an eyebrow.

"Who is this 'Pennywise'?" he asked again.

"Who else do you know that looks like clown?" the silence made Hitomi facepalm. "It's Hisoka, you dumbass!"

"HISOKA?!" his eyes opened greatly. "You didn't fight him... did you?"

"Oh, no," she walked past him. "I just stood there as he stabbed poisonous cards in all my body while eating cookies!"

At the silence, Hitomi realized that she shouldn't have mentioned the part of the poison. Quickly, her vision blurred a little, as she wavered a bit. Thankfully, Killua's hands were placed in her shoulders, stabilizing her.

"Take it easy, please," Alluka told her, sweetly. "You are wounded..."

"Don't worry," she slapped the boy's hands away. "I'm totally fine. Let's get moving!"

Then Hitomi cursed in her head, feeling the side-effects of either blood loss or poisoning, she didn't care which of both was, though. It looked like the adrenaline that was flowing in her blood - or what it remained of it - was running out.

"Hitomi!"

Everything spinned to the girl and when she realized what was happening, her knees had hit the ground. Looking at the blood dripping from her wounds to the grass, tainting it, she realized that neither her arms nor her legs had the strength enough to get her up.

They both rushed at her side instantly, in worry, to look at the shaking Kuruta. Killua did her best to keep calm, because he didn't want Alluka to panic either. That was the last that they needed right now.

"We need to treat this," Killua mumbled, almost to himself.

"No way, leave me here!" Hitomi shouted. "We can't lose any more time on me! I can manage in my own!"

"No!" Alluka yelled, much in the Hunters' surprise. "I won't let Big sister alone here!"

Hitomi smirked to herself. It looked like she got into the sister level already...

"Seriously, Hitomi, doing things by your own like that..." Killua sighed. "You are a B-type, aren't you?"

"So what if I am?"

"Thanks. That's all I needed to know."

Killua did what the girl expected the least. He picked her up bridal style, like he always did with his sister. Hitomi blushed like mad, trying to break free from his grasp, in vain.

"Alluka," he turned to his sister. "Sorry for the trouble, but can you hold by yourself in my shoulders?"

"Of course!" Alluka climbed in Killua's back, quickly sitting in his shoulders for a better grip.

"HEY!" Hitomi yelled. "Let me go! I'm totally fine!"

"See?" Killua told her, smirking. "You don't even have the strength to struggle..."

 _"I'm_ struggling, you idiot!"

"You are? Well, that makes me more certain about your lame physical state."

Hitomi growled slightly and gave up, because she noticed he was right. She was way too tired to continue fighting against his strong grip. It was useless.

"Just don't force yourself anymore, okay?" he whispered at her. "It's okay, you can rest until we reach there."

"You really think I would fall asleep while you are watching?" she bit back a laugh. "You pervert."

Killua still couldn't believe how stubborn Hitomi was. You just had to look at her to realize that she was actually fighting to _not_ fall asleep. He looked ahead, smirking.

The girl wondered why she was feeling that good when she pressed her head against Killua's chest... His warmth... It made her feel alive, but sleepy at the same time.

"Let's see so," but when he realized, she was already unconscious...

He couldn't blame her though. He frowned at her pale face, instinctively bringing her cold body against his own.

 _"Please, hold on a little more..."_ he forced himself to run faster. _"Don't die, Hitomi!"_

* * *

Consciousness suddenly hit her, as she shut her eyes tightly in discomfort of the light coming from the windows. Only after a couple of minutes, Hitomi decided to slowly open her eyes. Her gaze was blurry, but focused in the white ceiling above her, trying to recall the events from last time.

Quietly, she turned her head and saw something that awoke her all of sudden. Killua was there, his head resting in the bed, in a deep slumber.

 _"Like any cliché shoujo manga..."_ the girl's eyebrow twitched.

But when she took a closer look at the expression in his face, the girl frowned. He was grimacing. His eyes were shut tightly and his hand grasping the sheets, clutching them, more likely. Sweat beads were forming in his forehead.

"Killua... What's wrong?" she tried to shake him awake. "Wake up! Killua!"

With a gasp, Killua straightened up. He sat there, with wide eyes, feeling a little disoriented for a few minutes. Hitomi looked at him, blankly.

"You are awake now?" she asked.

Killua then seemed to recognize her as he blinked at her. "You are awake..."

"Yeah, I think I just asked something like this just now..."

That was when she felt herself being pulled to a hug. She blinked when Killua tighty brought her against his body, resting his head in her shoulder.

Well, was just her impression or he was _really_ out of character right now?

"Don't do that ever again, you idiot," he whispered at her.

And, without a clue of what to do, the girl hugged him back.

* * *

Hitomi had no idea of how annoying knowing the truth was, Killua had told her everything that happened in the whole two days she was off .

Despite all their efforts, Kanaria and Amane caught up with them, but they managed to keep Illumi from discovering them at least. It was time to depart, though, because he would end up visiting them in no time.

"We've already prepared an airship," Amane told them when they met up in the airport.

"Great, how many?" Killua asked, confusing the butler. "Sounds like you only have one. Are you serious about this? Without at least five or six airships heading to different places, we'll never lose Illumi!" he pointed at them. "Split up, and make the arrangements."

Meanwhile, Hitomi called Kanaria over. Without letting Amane know, she whispered.

"Hey, Kanaria," she was serious. "We need you to do something for us, please. Would you?"

"Of course," she nodded, blinking. "What is it?"

"Just... How annoying... but annoying like _annoying_ can you be?"

After ending their conversation, Hitomi walked out the place and sat down next to the Zoldyck siblings. She noticed by the corner of her eye Killua shivering slightly, but decided not to worry too much about it.

There were in the middle of a plan after all.

"This airship will take us to our destination," Kanaria told Amane. "Is that okay?"

"Yes," the butler nodded.

"We'll have to pay for two tickets, or they'll find out it's unmanned."

"I know that!" Amane was beginning to feel irritated. "Do you take me for a fool?"

"What does this say?" Kanaria asked, holding a paper.

"Ask the clerk."

"What names should we put the tickets under?"

"Look, can't you do anything by yourself?!" Amane then turned around to the place where the Zoldycks and Hitomi was supposed to be, but found no one. "Where's Killua-sama?"

Realization then hit her when she saw the airship flying high in the sky.

"Damn it!" the butler then yelled. She turned to Kanaria, pointing a finger at her. "Hey! You were pestering me as a distraction, weren't you?! You helped them escape!"

"What are you talking about?" Kanaria lied with a blank expression.

* * *

"What are you talking about?! Kurapika doesn't have a heart?!" Killua shouted, in shock, when Hitomi told him all about her encounter with the magician. "That's stupid! I bet he is lying. I didn't know you would be naive enough to believe Hisoka..."

Hitomi kept silent for a while, fixing up Alluka's blanket. She watched her sleeping form, little before standing up and walking towards the boy who was driving the ship.

"Yeah, at first I didn't believe him either, but..." she took a seat next to him. "Somehow, if we suppose that he is saying the truth, everything makes more sense... After all, at that time... I swore he was dead. There's absolutely no way his heart could've exploded and regenerate itself."

"I see..." he said, faintly.

The girl noticed something and frowned. Killua had just shivered again.

"Are you cold?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. They were in summer now, after all...

"It's nothing, really," he shrugged.

Hitomi still was not convinced, though.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm telling you I'm okay!" he said, irritated, taking his phone. "I'm calling Morel."

"... Okay..."

Killua talked with Morel for a long time, ignoring completely Hitomi. She was worriedly examining his face by the corner of her eye. He didn't look well at all.

But when the airship suddenly trembled, she felt like she had enough of it. She waited for him to cut the line, and placed a hand over his forehead.

"What are you doing?" annoyed, he slapped her hand away.

"Exactly as I suspected," she forced a smirk, worry in her eyes. "You've a fever, maybe for stress... Why don't you rest a lit-?"

"Stress, don't make me laugh," he smirked. "I can't rest, you know. There's no time for it."

He was surprised, though, when Hitomi stood up and pushed some button.

"Well, that's why the Autopilot-mode exists," she grinned at him.

"That's not enough, idiot. I also have to check up that Illumi isn't around! We've already lost two days, so it wouldn't be a surprise if he already found us!"

"Then, why didn't you leave me and escaped like I told you, dumbass?"

At the thought of it, Killua felt like he finally lost it. At the girl's surprise, he stood up and glared angrily at her, his fists clenching and unclenching in anger.

"What did you want me to do?! Leave you to die alone?! There is no way I can do that!" Hitomi didn't answer his outburst. "... If you were to die..."

That was when the girl got it and felt bad about her words. Maybe, she shouldn't have been that insensitive about her own death.

"Now, now... Calm down..." she wanted to tranquilize him, but it looked like it had exactly the opposite effect.

"Calm down? How do you want me to?!" he snapped. "Illumi is out there, if you didn't notice. If I'm not careful, he will kill both Alluka and you! And that means that if Alluka dies or I'm a second late, Gon and Kurapika will be gonners, too! Don't you understand?! One wrong move and... _and..._ "

'All the people I love will die'... that probably were the words that he couldn't say. A large lump in his throat didn't let him end his sentence.

Hitomi was frozen, looking in shock how tears streamed down his face, without an end. She felt that everything was just wrong. That wasn't the Killua she knew at all.

"Killua... What-?"

"And you know what is the worst thing? All this was my fault!" he continued, ignoring her, completely. "I let Kite to die, and that guided Gon to this! I let you walk away that time, to fight Pouf which lead Kurapika to help you and end like this! I let my parents know about Alluka's ability that caused them to enclose and hate her!"

She knew it. Nothing was making sense.

"Killua!"

"Because I didn't think straight, I foolishly taunted Illumi to kill Alluka! I didn't think straight that time when I run away and left you alone... And Hisoka nearly killed you!" his face was red now, and Hitomi couldn't tell if it was because of his anger of fever. "Stop looking at me like that! You know I'm right!... You should hate me!"

"KILLUA!"

It was useless. He wasn't recting. He wasn't listening. He wasn't the Killua she knew.

"I'm just useless! Everyone will die because of me! I SHOULD BE THE ONE DYING!"

His rant then stopped, but not at his own accord. Killua felt a pressure in his lips, his sapphire blue eyes opening at full capacity as he looked at her closed ones. He couldn't breath and his heart pumped like he was going to jump out his chest.

It was a matter of time, though, until he calmed down, like he was finally giving up to the warm of her mouth and lost himself in that sweet kiss, his tears finally slowing down.

His mind was in a total blank and clouded, but he certainly did notice Hitomi pulling away. That was when he felt himself pushed and his head ended up resting in her shoulder. Her arms wrapped around him tightly, like she didn't want him to go away.

"Please... Don't ever say anything like that ever again..." Hitomi whispered in his ear. "Did you ever think that would happen if you died? What would happen to us?"

Killua didn't reply, just kept there, unmoving. He was still shocked at her actions.

"I... don't even want to think about that..." she continued. "You should know how important you are to me... and to all of us."

The boy's eyes softened at her words, and felt somehow guilty. She was right.

Killua felt her scent, he never knew she _had_ an scent... And that it indeed smelled good. He faintly heard her gentle words, as he enjoyed the warmth of her body. His eyelids suddenly felt heavy, as he relaxed in Hitomi's embrace.

He still couldn't believe it, though. Some seconds ago, he was yelling like mad. But know, he was feeling calmer than never before.

But, that feeling...? Yeah, maybe...

 _"... Hitomi..."_ he fought to keep his eyes open. _"Feeling this way about someone... I thought... it would... never happen... to someone like me..."_

Killua felt a hand stroking his hair and he unconsciously buried his face on the blonde's one as his mind started to drift off, totally forgetting everything else.

Surrendering to the drowsiness and warmth, his blue eyes slowly began to close as he sniffed her scent once again.

... It felt good...

* * *

End of the chapter! Probably, next chapter or the 41th will be the last one. It's hard to believe it :(

Smack me if you want, because the first kiss scene ended up horrible :(

Anyway! If you want, check Mr. Kohen picture of my OC in deviantart, "Hitomi from Eyes Burning Scarlet"! It's awesome :D

Let's begin with reviews!

 **OhhPlease:** I love them a lot too, they are great! Thanks for the review and I hope you liked this update :D

 **JokeLover123:** Everything is possible with Nen XD (or so my creepy mind thinks...) Thank you for the review and I wish you liked it!

 **Kri:** Here's the fluff! I hope you liked it XD The meeting with Illumi will be next chapter, though. Thanks for reviewing!

 **Elisablackcat:** I wonder if Togashi will ever show us Senritsu's true form, when he returns of course (I heard he is returning next year, I think, but I hope he doesn't drop it months later again -_-') I bet she is really beautiful. Thank you for the review and I hope you enjoyed this chapter :)

 **Mr. Kohen:** LOL! I thought the same thing when I saw it XD Thank you for the review and I hope you liked this!

 **SoulXHunter:** Fluff is here, I hope you enjoyed it! Thank you for reviewing and I wish you liked this chapter :D

 **Veno:** Yes, it's Hisoka. Since the first part of this fanfic was based in the 1999 version, I thought it would be best to describe him with blue eyes (it's dificult to see his eyes in this version, but I'm pretty sure they are blue, I saw this more clearly in Greed Island OVA). Thanks for the review and I hope you enjoyed this chapter :)

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for the visit and I hope it was worth of it :D

See you all later!


	40. Last Song x Love x Eyes Burning Scarlet

**Disclaimer:** I wish I owned Hunter but it already belongs to Yoshihiro Togashi :( Sadly, I just own my idiotic OC, Hitomi... yay...

* * *

 **Chapter 40: My Last Song x I Love You x Eyes Burning Scarlet**

When Killua opened his eyes, he found a new weight in his shoulder and smiled warmly after realizing what it was his sister's head, who was using him as a pillow. He then noticed that the sheets that once were in Alluka were now wrapped around both of them.

 _"Hitomi,_ " he didn't know how, but he instantly knew it was her.

Then Killua's face flushed like mad, remembering the events of the last time he was awake. They kissed. _Kissed._ For real. And the worst thing is that he _did_ like it. Ugh.

Well... At least Alluka hadn't see them... Or so he hoped.

He then felt a gaze on him, so he slowly turned her head to find Hitomi's violet eyes on him. At the sight of the girl, that certain memory was triggered again in his mind. At it, he blushed redder.

His mind ran. He had to do something, because he didn't want that awkward atmosphere stuff... Wait, he had a fever, right? A low one, but a fever nonetheless.

Good. That could work...

"Ah, you are awake," Hitomi smiled. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine, I guess..." he carefully managed to get Alluka out of him and covered her with the sheets. "Sorry if I scared you."

Well, he did scare her with his yelling. She shook it off as the Zoldyck made his way and sat in the seat next to her. Then, Hitomi practically slapped her hand against his forehead.

"That hurt, you idiot!" he yelled at her, putting her hand away. "Why did you do that?!"

"For acting like an idiot this morning, for scaring me," she replied, with a straight expression. "And also, to check your temperature."

"Temperature?"

"Yeah, T-E-M-P-E-R-A-T-U-R-E," she spoke, like he was an idiot. A vein popped up in Killua's head at it. "You had a fever, but it looks like it broke quickly after a good nap... Without needing anything to bring it down. You know, I didn't have anything like water to do so... I guess Ikalgo was right about your superhuman immunity defense..."

Killua slowly nodded, letting the information in. They kept silent for a while, looking at the sky which was dark now, mostly because it was already night. He also noticed that they were flying above the clouds, that probably the girl had used to conceal themselves.

"Hey, Killua, I was wondering..." Hitomi broke the silence, hiding her eyes behind her bangs. "Do you remember... what happened a few hours ago?"

Well, here it came. That was the awkward question that both were expecting to be asked. Killua, being the perfect combination of Transmuter and tsundere that he was, decided to lie, to not show any hint of his attraction to her that, because of shyness he would never admit.

"Not really..." he whispered with a sigh, pretending to think hard. "The last thing I remember yelling to you about something... but I still can't recall what... And then waking up here. I guess I blacked out in the middle of the arguing, didn't I?"

"Well, something like that," Hitomi mentally thanked gods above for his answer. "You did gave me a pretty scare there, though."

"I already said that I'm sorry," Killua mumbled.

They fell silent once again, looking at the clouds that were already clearing up. Despite of that, they didn't worry too much because they were close to the hospital.

"If anyone sees Alluka when we get into the hospital, we are doomed. But if we clear the area, Illumi will have it easy," Hitomi sighed. "What to do? We obviously aren't going to enter by airship, are we?"

"Gotoh once said that we could enter directly in the hospital, I think that's the best idea," he took a phone and dialed a number. He kept still for a while. "I can't reach him."

"Call Kanaria," she suggested.

He did as she told him and called the female butler, who told him that she wasn't able to reach Gotoh either. That's why Killua asked her to manage that.

As the airship started to descend, Hitomi walked towards Alluka and woke her up. Once in the ground, they got inside the car and the butler - who Killua called Hishita - started to drive towards the hospital.

But the car then suddenly stopped, in the middle of the forest.

"What's wrong?" Killua asked.

"There are people in front of the car," Hishita replied.

Hitomi gasped at the sight of it. Indeed, there were people standing in front of their vehicle. They wobbly were walking towards them, wavering in their steps. The look in their eyes were lost.

At first, she thought she was inside some kind of zombie movie, but when she looked closer she noticed a few needles stuck in their faces.

Those were the Illumi's Needlemen that Killua told her about.

"Hishita, hit the gas!" Killua shouted at him, pointed at the men. "They're beyond help anyway!"

"I can't do that, Killua-sama," Hishita turned his head to them, showing that there were needles in his face as well. "Not unless Illumi-sama orders it."

The teenagers looked at him in shock while Alluka just kept watching with a blank look.

"Wh-What?!" Killua shouted.

Hitomi looked around and bit her lip, noticing that they were all surrounded by Needlemen. But that wasn't the worse fact, it was that someone slowly started to walk towards them from the shadows. And that someone was Illumi Zoldyck.

Great.

They reclutlanly got out the car, Killua still with an arm gripping his sister's shoulders tightly. Hitomi's eyes got red out of anger, as she let out a little of Nen, getting ready for whichever was the outcome.

"Kill," Illumi called. "You seem to be hiding something from me about Alluka."

"How did you know we were here?" his brother asked, tense.

"If I tell you, will you give me Alluka?"

"Forget it. I won't ask."

The girl then took a step closer, making all the others gave her a long look. She narrowed her cold, scarlet eyes, not leaving Illumi's body. She had come here to protect Killua and his sister, and she definitely wasn't going to step back now.

"Killua, protect your sister," she spoke, raising her right hand in front of her. "I'm going to entertain myself a little here, okay?"

Killua had no more option than agreed and step back in this circumstance, but he got terribly worried when he looked at Illumi's eyes. For the first time in his whole life, he looked angry, really angry, at the sight of Hitomi.

"Wait, Hitomi!" Killua called. "Illumi is-!"

"Yeah, going to kill me, right?" she said, with a serious expression. "I already know that. In fact, I'm the one out the three who he wants to kill the most," Hitomi then looked at Illumi. "Am I wrong?"

"You are right," he nodded. "I knew it wasn't wise to let you live when we first met, in the Hunter Exam."

Killua paled considerably after hearing that.

"Oh, that brings memories," she chuckled bitterly. "I guess it's time to solve this, right?"

Illumi turned to his puppets. "Okay, kill Hitomi. And slowly."

And when she realized, Hitomi was avoiding blows coming at her way. She stood still for a little, in the middle of a bunch of zombie-like puppets, and released a lot of Nen. Hitomi waved around her bracelet, starting to attack at them. However, after a while, she began to have the feeling that they just had not an end.

"Big sister!" Alluka wanted to jump in there, just to be stopped by her brother. Just in case, a few Needleman stood in front of them.

They didn't do anything. It looked like they were there just to avoid them to jump in the fight. Killua clenched his teeth, looking at Hitomi.

 _"Illumi doesn't care about Alluka that much, he just wants to kill her for being dangerous,"_ she reasoned, flipping in the air and kicking one out. _"He loves Killua, in a strange, manipulative way. That's the reason he won't kill him, he wants him for himself..."_ she got hit, but quickly stood again to charge again. _"That makes me the odd one. I think that, after Gon and I took Killua out of his house, he hates me for real. Ugh, maybe he even knows about my love for him... And thinks that I'm going to take him away from him..."_

In the middle of Killua's internal battle about intervening or not, someone jumped down a tree and stood in the ground. He snapped his head towards the person, to find that it was Tsubone, Amane quickly catching up from behind.

"It's me, the fool who was completely tricked," the older butler confessed. "Your mother can see everything that I see through this scope," she then turned to Illumi. "She probably transmitted the video to you, Illumi-sama."

"Bingo," Illumi chanted, still unfazed. Hitomi's eyes opened in surprise. "Tsubone served as my spy. Well, you can't remove that scope because Mom ordered you to wear it."

That was when Alluka held her hands to Tsubone.

"Tsubone, give me the nail from your middle finger."

Everyone was shocked after hearing that, including stupid Hitomi. The distraction took a lot of her, as one of the puppets caught her off guard and pinned her in the ground, by her neck.

She coughed blood.

"Hitomi!" Killua yelled in worry, about to run to her.

But in a flash, Amane was at his side and held his shoulders, refraining him from that option. He clicked his tongue in surrender, as he caught Tsubone just ripped nail and handed it to his sister.

"Tsubone, give me the nail from your ring finger," Alluka - or Nanika, more likely - asked.

At the same time, Hitomi was lifted by the neck, at the point of almost choke her up. Killua, on the other hand, caught the last nail and placed it on Nanika's hand. The child's face changed radically, as always.

"Now, Killua-sama, make your wish," Tsubone said, looking at the girl by the corner of her eye. "Amane and I will take care of the rest. Please allow me this opportunity to make amends for impeding your mission."

Killua was about to say his wish. He just had to do it. Then, Hitomi and Alluka would be safe. Gon and Kurapika would be healed...

"Are you going to do it?" Illumi asked. "Fine. That means when you save Gon and Kurapika, you'll follow the same process, right?"

The boy clenched teeth. Hitomi wanted to do something about it, but she just couldn't. She couldn't even breath now.

"If you sacrifice those puppets to kill me, you won't have any problem sacrificing a bunch of strangers to save them," he continued. _"Rule 5... The same person can't make two wishes in a row."_

After all, Killua had done one before then. When he threatened his own mother's life.

At the same time, from the trees, Hisoka was watching the scene, holding tightly a card on his hand, debating about his next kill.

 _"Would it be more fun to kill Alluka first, earning Killua and Hitomi's wrath and then kill Hitomi to make Killua angrier or more fun to spare Alluka and Hitomi, and save both Gon and Kurapika, making Illumi my enemy?"_ he wondered. _"Tough call..."_

He looked in amusement at Illumi, who was still persuading Killua.

"If you say yes, I'll happy to die. Your inner mission will have succeeded. It's against the rules for family members to kill one another, but the thing that will grant your wish... isn't family," he smirked. _"Assuming there's a secret rule that makes rule 5 not apply to Killua, if my death means no other of the family will die, that's acceptable. Killua will suffer for the rest of his life. I will live in his heart forever."_

Hisoka analyzed the situation again.

 _"Alluka and Hitomi lives, while Illumi dies, but I don't earn Killua's wrath. So if Gon and Kurapika are healed, I neither gain nor lose anything,"_ he thought. _"In that case, I will kill Alluka to earn Killua and Hitomi's wrath, then take out Killua to earn Illumi's wrath and make Hitomi even angrier. That is the best choice."_

Hitomi looked at Killua and frowned, his eyes were watering. Just at the thought of her not being able to do anything at all to help, just being strangled to death, made her eyes water as well. She took her knife from her pocket.

 _"I refuse... to be useless again..."_ in the others' surprise, Hitomi reacted to grab the hand that was strangling her _. "I already said it..." Hitomi took her knife._

She then stabbed it, letting herself free. Hitomi fell into her knees, gasping for air, before standing up again. She was determined to protect everyone, even if the cost was her life.

Hitomi then decided it. She was going to use _that._

"I'll do things right this time," she whispered.

"Hitomi...?" the boy worried. Just looking at her eyes... It was scary to even think about it.

She didn't say anything about that.

"Hugebone," she jokingly called the elder butler. "Can you take Killua and Nanika somewhere far from here? I don't want them to be hurt in the crossfire."

Killua's eyes opened. She only had one technique that powerful, or at least that he could think of. If he was right, he certainly had what to worry about.

She slowly started to shake her bracelet, sound waves rushing everywhere around her, like a shield.

Once again, he wanted to jump in there, but Amane tightened the grip on him. Tsubone kept silent for a while, closing her eyes.

"At once," she solemnly nodded.

"Wait, Hitomi!" Killua tried to stop her. "Don't do it, you idiot!"

She then turned around, her hair now flying everywhere. It hit him directly on the chest when her red gaze fixed on him, which remembered him from the last time he saw Gon until he disappeared in the flames.

A warm smile crossed her features.

"Killua," she called, sweetly. "Thank you for everything. Can you please say goodbye to everyone else for me?"

"Don't!" that was all he managed to say. "Hey! Wait-!"

"Take them away!" Hitomi shouted. She turned around, not being able to handle seeing them anymore. "NOW!"

And like that, Amane managed to wrap her arms around Killua's waist to lift him and take him away, as Tsubone picked up a confused Nanika.

"HITOMI!" Killua shouted.

Hitomi bit her lip, hearing that all of sudden, the forest was quiet. The girl could tell that Illumi and her were alone now.

Holding back the tears she wanted to cry right now, she fixed her gaze on Illumi. The puppets were surrounding her, as her fiery red eyes just glared at the emotionless black ones.

"In the end it looks like we are similar than we thought, right?" Illumi told her, as she just narrowed her eyes. "Both of us are Manipulators, and we both decided to give up in our lives for protecting our loved ones, am I wrong?"

Hitomi released a cold chuckle.

"In fact, the only thing I agree is that we are both Manipulators," she told him, letting even more Nen get out her body, the sound waves already going crazy. "But the huge difference is that _I_ want to protect all the people I love... But _you_ just want to wrap them all to yourself. That's a really sick way to love someone!"

"Oh, yeah?" his lips curved slightly. "Well, let's focus in this task first. If you end dying first by my hands or your own."

Her eyes closed as she took a long breath.

"My Last Song," she called the name.

Hitomi's Nen then burst like never before. The sonic waves flew everywhere, slicing everything in their way like millions of blades, including herself. Hitomi held back a cry of pain as it cut through her own body like paper. That was when she felt the attack slicing her chest open, making her fall in her knees, not being able to keep her ability anymore.

But much in her dismay, Illumi got out the trees, with just some scratches and panting audibly. He leaned against it, searching for something in his pocket as Killua and Nanika came back.

"Watch out!" the boy tried to warn her.

The needle flew and got struck in Hitomi's shoulder, making her flinch in pain. Illumi's eyes opened considerably as she stood up for a little, grinning and taking the needle out of her body.

"I already told you, didn't I? You are out of Nen right now," she threw it at the floor. Her eyes shone redder. "Well, I can't blame you... No one can hear... when I'm talking in a ultrasound frequency..." her sight suddenly got dizzy. "... But your... subconscious mind... can... do... it..."

 ** _THUD!_**

Hitomi found herself looking at the sky, sucking in the air around like her life depended on it. She just lied there, her body giving up on moving anymore. She didn't want to anyway, her body ached everywhere to do so.

 _"I never thought in my life I would die this young..."_ she thought randomly. _"Well, considering all the troubles I got myself into... it's surprising I survived this long..."_

Memories flashed in her life at lighting speed. She remembered that she had read about that life review in near-death situations, but she had never believed in them... until now, that's it.

It pained even more, seeing the faces of her friends she never said goodbye to. First one was Leorio.

 _"Leorio, I guess I'll never see you fulfilling your dream of being a doctor..."_ she remembered her last incident with the first friend she had ever made. _"Gon, I wanted to see you alright... To tell you how sorry I was..."_ then, her brother appeared, in her head obviously. _"Kurapika, I wanted to see your smile as well again. You don't know how much I was waiting for traveling together again... Sorry..."_

That was when she noticed Killua's little sister standing at her side, blue eyed. She covered her mouth at the sight of Hitomi, tears rolling down her face.

 _"I wanted to save you, girls. To set you both free..."_

Then, Hitomi felt a pair of arms holding her and turning her around, and she looked at the boy she held feelings for. He was looking at her, at the verge of tears.

She wanted to talk, but she just couldn't. She didn't even have enough energy to do so.

 _"I wanted to see you smiling too for the last time... Not like this..."_ she managed to smile. _"It looks like I was never able to say it. I never knew just three damned words... would be that difficult to pronounce... and together."_

Hitomi felt the blood pouring from her wounds, rushing like thin, warm rivers through her body to drip in Killua's arms. She felt bad about tainting him with it, but she just couldn't help it. The boy didn't seem to mind about it, though.

 _"There are so many things I wanted... But I'll never be able to accomplish them,"_ she chuckled bitterly. _"It looks like I will end like an egoistic brat after that... Because, in the end, I didn't want... to die..."_

* * *

Kurapika didn't know why, but he sure felt it. Call it brother's instinct of whatever, but he felt it. He shot up from his bed, blue eyes open in full capacity, earning both Senritsu and Leorio's attention.

But they worried even more when they watched his eyes turn red.

 _"Hitomi,"_ that was his only thought, as he stood up from his bed.

"Kurapika!" Senritsu was worried.

"What's all of this?!" Leorio placed his hands on his shoulders. "You are weak and-!"

"I don't care!" he shouted at him.

He freed from his grasp and took another couple of steps, before he stopped abruptly, clutching his chest with both hands, grimacing in pain.

Before falling dead weight in the floor.

"KURAPIKA!"

* * *

Killua left the girl in the floor and clenched his fists, hiding his eyes with his bangs. Just... why did she do that? There wasn't even a reason solid enough for her to give up in her life! So... Why?...

"Big brother," Killua noticed her sister looking at him. Alluka nodded and he understood almost instantly.

Not long after that, Alluka closed her eyes, probably calling Nanika once again. Then, that dark aura surrounded the child and she opened her now black eyes, waiting for Killua to say something.

"Nanika," he spoke softly. "Heal Hitomi."

"'Kay," she then stretched her hands to her. "Hand... Hand..."

Killua took her cold hand and gave it a squeeze, before giving it to Nanika. Everyone was just surprised at the sight of the bright light that surrounded them.

"Nanika is skilled at destroying, but fixing isn't her forte," the boy explained. "When she's fixing, she must touch the target."

The shine vanished and everyone looked expectantly at the Kuruta, whose violet eyes snapped open at the same time she pushed herself into a sitting position. She blinked for a few seconds, confused.

"Hitomi!" Nanika smiled brightly at her with wide blue eyes.

"Nanika?" Hitomi looked at her own body, noticing that her wounds were missing. "Did you do that?"

"Yeah!" she nodded.

"Wow, you sure are really skilled!"

Killua just smiled at her, glad that she was okay now. It then widened when Nanika stood up, looking at him, feeling happy. She threw herself in her arms, and he hugged her tightly.

"Killua!" she exclaimed. "Pat my head!"

"Of course, I will."

Hitomi snickered at the sight.

"Hitomi said I'm skilled!" she said, happily.

"Yeah, you are," he stoked her hair, smiling. "That was amazing, Nanika."

The girl giggled softly, before falling asleep in his arms. Hitomi stood up, fixing his gaze on Killua, who was in the verge of tears.

"Healing someone is tiring, so Nanika must sleep," he picked her up. "But that's it. Nanika has never made a cruel request after healing someone!" a lone tear rolled down his face, looking at his older brother. "Nanika is kinder than anyone. The one who's cursed is the one who wishes."

Hitomi then noticed his face becoming darker.

"If you refer to Nanika as an object again, I won't consider you my brother anymore," he told him, coldly.

After hearing those words, Hisoka felt somewhat discouraged, as he put his card down. Without anyone noticing it, he disappeared from the place.

"Got it, Kill. If you can heal both Gon and Kurapika without any risk, that's terrific," Illumi raised his hand. "But that doesn't change the fact that Nanika is dangerous and that my questions remain unanswered."

Killua's stern gaze didn't leave him.

"Kill, you're still hiding something. Such as how Milluki's rule 5 doesn't apply to you," Illumi pointed at him. "Until you tell me everything, I won't let Alluka go."

And like that, Illumi walked away. Both of them looked at Illumi, as he disappeared in the darkness of the woods. Hitomi had to admit it, he was someone she didn't mess with anymore.

 _"Stupid! That's why I can't tell you anything,"_ Killua said to himself. _"If you knew the last rule, you'd... No, all of you... would put needles in my head again."_

A hand brought him back to reality, as it tenderly wiped a tear away from his face. He looked at the owner, slightly surprised.

"My, my. There are people that says that a lot of _girls_ looks pretty when crying, but it looks like you are not that behind," she joked, as always. "What does that say about you?"

"Shut up," he blushed a little, looking away. What the girl didn't notice, though, was a smile curving his lips. "Well, let's go."

* * *

"What do you mean?" Hitomi almost snapped at Tsubone, still in the car. "You mean I can't get a step outside until Gon is awake?"

"Exactly."

"Why?!"

"You have to convince him that Alluka-sama hasn't anything to do with his recovery."

Hitomi huffed, leaning back on her seat with crossed arms as Alluka - who had just woken up - blankly looked at her. Killua took a look at his friend as well and snickered a little at her childish attitude.

But soon he got serious when she gazed at the sky through the window, with concerned eyes.

"It has been awhile since we left the hospital," she frowned. "I wonder if they are both alive..."

"I'm sure they are," Killua stated. "Not for a lot more time, though. We have to hurry... But..."

The Kuruta looked at the Zoldyck, with a raised eyebrow.

"There's something that worries me," he confessed. "Right after a wish, Nanika goes to sleep, and since Gon is in such a critical state, my guess is that she will be out for a lot of time... I don't know if Kurapika will endure that much..."

"Then we ask for the wish now," Killua looked at the girl, like she had grown a second head. "If we do so, we'll have more time for her to wake up to heal Gon."

The boy released a long, tired sigh.

"I think I already told you that she has to touch the target to heal it..." he mumbled, in annoyment.

"Just to heal, yeah. But I remember you saying that she could grant _any_ wish, too," she grinned at him. "And it seems that _you_ don't remember me saying that I already had a plan. And, as you know, my plans are always perfect."

He shook his head. Humility wouldn't be bad for her to have... a little at least would help.

"Hitomi," the girl next to the blonde stretched her hands to her, palms facing up. "Give me your hand!"

Killua's face snapped at her direction, as Hitomi smirked faintly. His eyes widened slightly at the sight of her taking her dagger her pocket off and pointing at her hand with it.

Was she really going to chop her hand off?!

"Just kidding!" she stuck her tongue at Killua, annoying him way a lot. Much in his surprise, though, she placed her hand in top on hers. "Here you are!"

Nanika giggled, making Killua blink. He was completely sure that when she asked for something specific, she meant in the way of giving it for her to have...

"Hitomi," Nanika continued. "Give me your hair!"

"Okay! Just a minute."

The boy looked at the girl, who certainly didn't cut her hair. Instead, she grabbed just _one_ hair and yelped as she took it off her head. Nanika looked really happy when she got it.

"Hitomi," the last request. "Give me your heart!"

This time, the ex-assassin flinched. This time it was something that he couldn't think of a way for her to escape. However, Hitomi didn't look fazed at all. Even more, she was smiling.

Tenderly, Hitomi took Alluka's hand on hers and placed it on her chest. The child looked blankly at the older one, as she smiled at her, warmly.

"Here you have my heart," Hitomi grinned. "It's yours as well."

That took Killua that off guard that nearly fainted, it looked like Hitomi was always quick when it came to joke around like that. He waited for the fourth quest, which Hitomi had no more option than fulfill completely or she would die.

But when he saw Nanika's black eyes, he got the urge to throw himself through the window. It was kind of bizarre. Hitomi grinned at him, raising two fingers in victory.

 _"All I can conclude is that Nanika makes exceptions to all the people she cares for, like she does with me. The requests I have to fulfill are at level 1, no matter how difficult was last wish,"_ he sweatdropped at the sight of Hitomi. _"Hitomi's exception is that she is allowed to joke around and fulfill the requests in whatever way she wants, even if it's not what Nanika asked for..."_ But then, the Zoldyck smiled. _"Well, looks like she already reached the level she has a privilege as well."_

Hitomi then smiled at the child. "Right, Nanika. It seems like it's my turn for asking you something..."

* * *

They had finally arrived at the hospital and they were waiting for Alluka - who had fallen asleep when Hitomi asked the wish - to wake up. She was sitting far from her, right next to Gon's bed.

" _After Gon is healed, I'm off,"_ she thought. _"I need to save my only brother as well..."_ her gaze fixed in the little vial in her hand. _"I hope this works on Kurapika. I'd have used it on Gon, but I'm pretty sure his throat is damaged enough to drink it..."_

Her eyes then trailed down the boy, who was completely covered by bands. If the situation wasn't that bad like it, she surely would have joked about him being a mummy as well as a dog.

She chuckled bitterly. Hitomi missed the days in which she could just joke around and laugh with her friends, laugh with them nor risking their lives constantly to save another one's. Funny thing was though, that she used to thought that their lives were in danger enough.

If they used to risk themselves every day, now they were doing so every minute.

Their fun trip to NGL and East Gorteau was enough proof of it.

The thought of it made her stomach twist itself in guilt, because it remembered their little fight after hell broke loose and her whole, perfect word splitted apart. She clutched the covers in which Gon was using and winced even more when she realized that they were soaked in his blood.

"Where am I?" Alluka's drowsy voice snapped her out her own little world.

Alluka was awake, so Hitomi turned around and waved her hand slightly at her. She listened as Killua explained everything to his little sister.

"My friend is here, sleeping. He's very sick," Killua explained. "I want to help get him on his feet again."

The little Zoldyck sat up, still.

"You want Nanika to take over," she understood, before pouting. "Just when I was able to spend time with you!"

Hitomi chuckled. _"Looks like the proverb 'if you snooze, you lose' is more literal than affirmative..."_

"Don't worry," Killua told her. "Like I told you, we'll be together from now on. Please, help me."

And like that, Nanika took over. Hitomi stood up, watching them walking towards them slowly. Killua's hand that was wrapped in his sister's tightened his grip.

As always, Nanika asked for Gon's hand and Killua took it who winced along Hitomi at the sight. There was something impossible to describe. It looked burnt, skinny and rotten, all at the same time.

"Please, Nanika... Please heal Gon!"

"'Kay."

Instantly when Nanika touched, Killua and Hitomi got blinded by a strong light. The girl gasped at it, while covering her shut eyes, in order to not get her sight damaged. She felt the aura rushing out the Zoldyck's body, making her froze at it.

That girl was even more powerful than she had given her the credit for.

The light ceased and Hitomi slowly opened her eyes. She was far from marveled at the sight of her friend's hand. For the first time in awhile, it looked like it always was. Slightly tanned, solidly built, _healed._

"Is he...?" Killua trailed off.

Hitomi didn't answer. She just took the inhaler off, before removing the bandages from his face. Her smile almost split her face in two when she found herself in front of a real human, sleeping.

"Gon..." she mumbled.

Gon was back to normal. Killua smiled as well and was about to say something, when the sleeping boy suddenly stirred. The albino quickly picked her sister up, who had just fell asleep on him.

"I can't let him see Alluka," he said, turning to the girl. "Make sure he believes whatever story you make up for him."

"Eh-?"

When she realized what was happening, he was gone. Hitomi's eyebrow twitched, in irritation. He always mocked her about her awful lying skills, and now he was asking her to come up with a wonderful story believable enough to save their skins?

Great. She should be arranging her own funeral then...

"Hitomi?" a faint voice startled her.

Slowly, the girl turned around to see the boy wide awake, sitting cross-legged in the bed. His big chocolate eyes were looking at her, blankly.

"What happene-?" he asked, innocently.

He didn't even have the chance to end the question, because he felt arms wrapping him in a tight hug. Gon looked at the girl in confusion, she was sobbing softly.

She let go and smiled warmly at her.

"Was I that bad?" Gon asked.

"'Bad' is a pretty short to describe it," she snickered. "You fell in some kind of coma after fighting Pitou and woke up out of blue-"

Her eyes widened, remembering something. She looked at the floor, in shame, feeling Gon's curious gaze casted on her.

"Sorry," she mumbled, confusing the boy even more. "Back then... I said terrible things to you. I-I called you... trash... selfish and bastard... when the only trash... selfish and bastard is me and... and... If you don't want to be my friend anymore, I won't blame you... b-but... but... but-!"

"Hitomi," he cut her down, placing his hand on top of hers. That was when she realized that it had just been shaking. "It's okay."

She looked up at him, he scratched the back of his head, smiling awkwardly.

"Honestly, I acted in a mean way to you all, when you wanted to help me... So..." he then grinned, like he had an excellent idea. "I know! If you forgive me, I'll forgive you! It's a great deal, isn't it? We can start over and be friends again!"

Gon didn't have to wait long to feel the pain, as Hitomi's index finger started to poke his forehead, hard.

"Don't say things like that," she released him. "We don't need a deal to be friends, idiot!"

"Well, but it was necessary in a way to start over," his smile widened. "After all, you poked me as well when we became friends at first!"

Hitomi blinked at him, before smirking. "Are you masochist?... Nevermind..." she then placed her hands on his shoulders, making him stand up from his bed. "Alright, you should go to see Leorio now. He was worried sick about you. And who knows, maybe you will find a huge surprise there."

"What surprise?"

Hitomi didn't answer, just let out a soft chuckle. In fact, she had thought about that scene many times before, since she saw that video. It was kind of logical to think that Ging was still there, and that Gon would bump on him soon.

Gently, she pushed him out the room. "I'll catch you later," she said.

"Huh?" the boy was confused. "You are not going with me?"

"I would love to do it, but I have a brother to save."

Gon's eyes opened dramatically. "Is Kurapika okay?!"

"Well, he isn't. But I assure you he will. Just go."

With a nod, Gon ran away. Hitomi glanced him bumping into Biscuit, who then leaded him to the building the Election was taking place. The Kuruta quickly turned around, finding Senritsu in no time.

"Thank goodness, Hitomi-chan. You are here," the Musical Hunter released a long sigh of relief. "This way."

Nodding, Hitomi followed the woman. "How is he?" she asked.

She suddenly felt really worried, just by looking at Senritsu's expression. She kept in silence for a couple of minutes, before speaking again.

"Not well," Hitomi kind of suspected it. "He fainted last night, and he didn't wake up since then... Leorio said that he doesn't have much time."

"Okay," she nodded. "We should hurry up, then."

Running as fast as their legs allowed them to, the female Hunters arrived at Kurapika's room. Hitomi opened the door and bursted on it, just to freeze in her spot at the sight of her brother…

Summarizing it up, he looked livelier when he 'died' on the King's Palace. That was saying a lot.

Biting her lip, Hitomi decided that she wouldn't gain anything by standing there, looking at him. She rushed towards him taking the small vial from her pocket.

"Will that heal him?" Senritsu asked, standing next to her.

"I hope so," her hand holding it started to shake a little. "It's worth to give it a try, though."

Frowning, she opened the vial and let the bluish liquid fall in his mouth. Both girls watched expectantly at the boy, waiting for something to happen.

They waited…

And waited…

… And waited…

* * *

Gon ran through the halls along Leorio, feeling a little calmer about everything. Sure, the doctor-to-be told him everything that happened when he was out - leaving out their trip to the Zoldyck state, of course - but he didn't look that worried about the situation. Don't get him wrong, he cared about Kurapika, but he also trusted Hitomi. When she left to save her brother, Gon noticed that she was confident about whatever she had under her sleeve.

That was why he knew that Kurapika would live.

However, that feeling vanished into the thin air when they stepped in the room. Senritsu had a hand placed on Hitomi's shoulder, who had just fallen in her knees, shaking slightly.

All hope he held vanished like that, at the sight of the girl. She was just destroyed.

"What happened?" Gon asked, while Leorio lowered his head.

He kind of knew what it was, and he expected it to happen.

"I was late, that was what happened," Hitomi mumbled. "I'm always late! And because of that, I lost him _again!"_

That was when Senritsu straightened up, eyes wide open. This, however, didn't go unnoticed by the Kuruta. She looked up to her for a while, before gasping.

Frantically, she placed her ear in her brother's chest.

 _ **THUMP!**_

Her eyes opened at full capacity.

 _ **THUMP!**_

Her brother was alive. She looked at him. Kurapika was looking at her with his bright, blue eyes. The ones she hadn't seen since long time ago.

"Seriously, next time I'm going to let you die without bothering to clean your mess," Hitomi sighed.

"You know what they say," he smirked. "A bad seed never dies."

"Hey!" both Leorio and Hitomi wanted to stop him when he wanted to sit up.

Gon just kept looking at the boy, frozen in the spot.

He just smiled at them, saying that he was totally alright now. Because of their faces of disbelief, he proceed to lift his little sister by her waist and place her over his lap, much in her surprise and dismay.

"Right, right..." Hitomi sighed, her face a little redish now. "I think I'll believe you for no-"

"... KURAPIKA!..."

Gon had just reacted, and Hitomi instantly knew. How did she do so? Easy, he basically tackled Kurapika, pushing her out the bed violently in the process. She groaned, still on the floor, feeling the pain from her head to her toes... Especially her back... Damn! It hurted like hell...

"Gon!" Kurapika said, pleasantly surprised. "You are okay!"

"Yeah!" he grinned. "So do you!"

Then, they looked at Leorio and Senritsu, who were awfully pale. They followed their gaze, just to find a killer glare coming from Hitomi, who was resting her head on her hands, over the bed.

"Damn you..." she mumbled. "You want me to be the next one to die or what?!"

After a long time, they successfully managed to stop the girl from kill Gon, the one she had just risked her life to save. When they sat next to each other, she couldn't stop glaring at him. He looked away, sweatdropping.

"Now, now, since Kurapika and Gon are okay... Why don't we try to calm down, a little at least?" Senritsu tried to cool the girl down, in vain, obviously. He looked at the two older men. "Any way to do so?"

An idea crossed Leorio's mind, making him wiggle his eyebrows. The other two sweatdropped, seeing like they weren't going to like this at all...

"So, Hitomi~" a shiver ran down her back, for an unexpected reason... "How have you... No, how have you and Killua been?"

She flinched and gave him an angry glare. She somehow had the feeling that this subject would come back in no time. And when Gon smiled, the urge to hit the old man increased considerably.

"That's true! Without me around you had a lot of time alone, together!" his grin increased. "I bet you are a couple now!"

"No," she replied annoyed.

"No confessions?"

"No."

"No romantic talks?"

"Hell, no!"

"Not even a kiss?"

When Hitomi flinched, everyone looked at her wide-eyed. She cursed herself and her inability to lie to others. Leorio and Gon grinned, the older one in a more perverted way. Senritsu smiled warmly while a vein popped up in his head.

"N-No!" she stuttered.

"You are lying," Senritsu told her, annoying her even more.

She blushed furiously. There was no way out now.

"So you did?!" Gon shouted in excitement. "Hey, why didn't you confess right then? It makes it obvious!"

"Stuff happened!" she looked away, still embarrassed. "Even more... I don't know if Killua remembers it... And I'm not saying this to protect him from Blondie's wrath..." when she looked at Leorio's perverted face, she flushed even more and pointed at him. "You! Don't go imagining things!"

"I wonder..." the future doctor went on.

Hitomi facepalmed, still unable to believe. How did that tragic situation suddenly transform in a annoying love talk? And about _her_ love life, nevertheless. It was embarrassing...

"You should tell him," Kurapika spoke, surprising everyone. He didn't look really pleased, though. "I understand you have grown up... And I think I should let you live your romantic life however you like, even if I'm not fond of it," he smiled at her. "However, in exchange, you have to show me some courage and tell him how you feel."

Hitomi leaned on the chair, looking at the clouds through the window. After all, they would departing soon. If it wasn't now, there wasn't going to be a time to do so.

She released a long sigh.

"Maybe I can try..." she snached her bag and took something out. "But first, there's something we both have to do, brother."

Kurapika just nodded, seeing the red eyes through the vial, beneath the girl's fingers..

* * *

Hitomi looked at the flames which Kurapika had just lighten up, and closed her eyes, holding Pairo's eyes closer to her chest. She did remember taking the Hunter Exam to do this to every pair of eyes from her people, but never imagined she would do this in her life... Even if it was the first one.

"Hitomi," Kurapika called over her.

Noticing that it was time, she nodded at the boy, before giving the vial a long look. With a serious expression, she opened it and threw the Scarlet Eyes at the fire, watching them turning into ash and disappear in the heat.

Kurapika noticed Hitomi's expression and placed his arm over her shoulders, pulling her closer to him. Both siblings stared at the flames, hugging like this.

 _"Was it fun?"_ a voice echoed in the back of her head.

Her eyes opened slightly, remembering that question. In silence, she smirked.

 _"Awfully fun. I discovered many things, I made a lot of friends... I'm happy living like this,"_ she told him, in her head. _"So, thank you for giving me this opportunity. Thank you and goodbye..."_ she closed her eyes. _"Rest in peace, Pairo, my friend."_

She looked up to Kurapika, who looked like he was thinking about that same question as well. He glanced at her, and smiled fondly.

"Well, we should go, right?" he said to her. "The others are waiting."

Hitomi nodded, energetically, before they both walked away, before turning the fire off, of course. In no time, they found Leorio, Killua and Alluka sitting in a table, probably waiting for them both and Gon. They all agreed to meet for a last time, after all.

"Kurapika and Dummy arrived, after all," Killua noticed.

"Hey, brats!" Leorio waved his hand at them.

A vein popped up in each head of the Kuruta siblings. Kurapika released a long sigh to calm himself down meanwhile Hitomi's eyebrow started to twitch violently.

"Oh, if it's Kitty, Grampa and Alluka!" Hitomi joked back, annoying the other two. "Where is Doggy?"

"He went to talk with this 'Ging'," Leorio said, like his name left a bad taste in his mouth. "I don't know how much time he will waste there..."

Just like answering that sentence, they all heard steps coming their way. The five looked over Gon, who looked really disappointed and lost for some reason. Wordlessly, he let himself fall in a chair, looking blankly at the sky.

"Uh... Gon-?" Killua was interrupted by a piece of paper shoved in his face.

They all looked at it. There was a tree drawn on it. He also had written something:

 _"I'm waiting atop the World Tree."_

"Well, he certainly didn't say that he would be waiting right there..." Leorio mumbled, feeling annoyed.

"Come on, cheer up," Hitomi smiled at him. "You already met him! Just a step more, and you will catch him! Wasn't that the reason you wanted to be a Hunter?"

Gon brightened all of sudden. "You are right!"

The four smiled, seeing the old Gon back again. Leorio chuckled slightly, standing up from his seat and throwing his suitcase over his shoulder.

"Well, I should be going home," he declared. "It was fun to see you guys again and meet Alluka, and I'm really glad you are all alive... But I'm not a doctor yet. I still need a minimum of two years of hard study!"

They all looked at them, smiling a little.

"Aww, it's not fun!" Gon pouted a little. "But it can't be helped!"

"You better study hard, Rioleo!" Killua joked. Leorio was about to yell at him, but was interrupted.

"It was nice to meet you, Mister," Alluka said sweetly, bowing in a slight way.

Leorio froze there, looking at the clueless girl for a little. Gon smiled awkwardly, Kurapika shook his head with a smile, while Killua and Hitomi laughed hard.

"You know..." Hitomi managed to calm down, and whispered close to her ear. "He is twenty-one right now."

"Eh?" her eyes went big, before turning to Leorio. "I'm really sorry, Leorio-san!"

"Does that run through the blood...?" he mumbled, thinking on Killua. "Well, you seem a little more polite than him at least... I can get myself angry with you."

They all laughed for a while, bidding themselves farewell. Just when he turned around to leave, Gon stood up from his seat, gaining everyone's looks.

"Wait!" he called. "Are we all going to meet again?"

Leorio thought about it a little. "Certainly, we haven't thought of a date..." he commented. "And I don't want another of you guys almost dying to meet again."

"Then, we can fix a date in which we can met, every year! It doesn't mean we can't see each other another day, but it means that we will met no matter what happens!" Hitomi exclaimed, before shuffling Alluka's head. "And with 'we', you are included, you know."

Alluka nodded, grinning along her brother.

"Sounds nice," Kurapika commented. "And when should we meet, then?"

"September 1st, how about it? It's less of a month from today, though," she almost instantly proposed. "Every year, we can met on September 1st, on Yorkshin, like we first agreed."

"If you manage to bring that idiot on date, is okay to me," Killua joked, obviously making reference of Kurapika.

"Leave it to me!"

"I don't need a babysitter," Kurapika muttered, annoyed.

Leorio laughed a little more.

"That's it then," he waved once more. "See you all on September 1st!"

* * *

Kurapika had said that he needed to fix a couple of things before departing, so she let Hitomi go with Gon, Killua and Alluka for the last time. That was why they all were looking in awe at the huge tree, from a far away spot.

"It's huge!" Killua exclaimed, still holding Alluka's hand. "This is definitely the tallest tree in the world."

"I wonder if you will find some giant up there, Jack-chan," Hitomi joked, placing her hands on her hips. "Okay, let's take a look around before then!"

Moments after that, the four were eating small buns, completely ignoring the guide. As he continued to talk, the four decided to take a photo. That was why Alluka stood in the middle of Hitomi and Killua, Gon standing next to the Kuruta as well.

And for the fist time in forever, Hitomi actually won in a Rock, Paper and Scissors, winning as well the right of keeping the picture.

Ending the trip, the guide walked away, feeling a little upset about not being heard at all. Gon took a couple of steps closer to the entry, before stopping in his tracks and turning around to face their friends.

"So, this is as far as we're going," Killua stated.

"Same for me," Hitomi nodded. "Take care."

"Yeah," Gon nodded as well. "Killua, Hitomi, thank you for everything."

Hitomi just grinned sheepishly at it, while Killua blushed slightly, before smirking as well.

"Well, after you told me you would defeat Pitou alone and that it was none of my business, I was pretty depressed!" Killua pressed him.

Gon felt every time more guilty as he let his words sink in, falling in his knees and releasing some kind of depressing aura.

"I'm really sorry..." he mumbled, apologetically.

"Big brother!" Alluka scolded, as Killua looked at her, in his cat-mode on.

"Way to go, Killua," Hitomi grinned.

"Big sister, too?!" the female Zoldyck scolded her as well.

The Kuruta gave her a huge grin, helping Gon up and telling him about a dozen of times to stop apologizing, at the point of annoying her.

"Well, you apologized," Killua said. "And I think I can say I'm only here with Alluka now because of the time I spent with the both of you," he turned around to face a confused Gon. "She's the one who healed you."

"Huh?! Is that true?!" he looked at Hitomi. "But you said-!"

"Yeah, I lied," she grinned. "I bet you are the only one in the world who believes a lie coming from me!"

"But-! You should have told me sooner!"

They sweatdropped, when they noticed a crowd forming around them. Hitomi released a long sigh, grabbing the boy, taking him away.

"Sorry... We don't want too many people knowing about this," Killua mumbled, while running away. "You know, it's sort of a complicated family thing..."

Once in a alley, far from the people, they decided to talk about it. Killua asked for Alluka to call Nanika and closed her eyes. When she opened them, turning completely black, Gon found himself looking at them in amazement.

"She has the power to grant any wish I make," Killua told him.

"Any wish?!" he repeated, surprised.

"Because of that power, she was locked up in our house," Killua smirked. "But thanks to you, she's outside now."

"Yeah," Hitomi placed her arm over Nanika's shoulders. "And thanks to you, I met these two girls!"

The albino boy smiled wider at the sight of the girls.

"And I'm prepared to spend the rest of my life protecting her," he continued. "We should be the ones thanking you."

"'Kay," Nanika said.

"N-No way..." Gon stuttered. "I should be thanking you!"

Hitomi smirked as well, looking at both boys, remembering the talk they once had at Whale Island. That they would travel together until Gon found his father, Killua found whatever he wanted to do and she found at least a pair of Scarlet Eyes. That alone would mean that today they would have to depart for good.

She remembered then that her true objective was to find all of them. It looked like her goal was the only one that wasn't complete yet.

The three looked at each other for a long time.

"This is no good," Gon said. "If we stay here any longer..."

"Yeah," Killua admitted.

Hitomi had no more option but agree. The three got out the place when Alluka switched back up and walked to the entrance of the World Tree.

"I'll be traveling to all kinds of places with Alluka," Killua said. "I'll e-mail you guys from time to time."

"Me too," Hitomi said and Gon nodded.

"And I'll contact you if I happen to see a pair of Scarlet Eyes, Hitomi," Gon told the girl.

"I'll too... Well, if I remember to," the male Zoldyck joked.

Hitomi shook her head. "Thanks, I think..."

Killua turned to Gon. "Say 'hi' to your dad for me," he said.

"Yeah, and tell him to avoid punches in the face," Hitomi mocked. "It's not healthy."

"That's mean!" the Freecss boy pouted.

Alluka smiled sweetly.

"After I've had my brother all to myself for a while, I'll set him free," she spoke. "Will you both hang out with him then?"

"Hold on! I'm the one choosing to hang out with them!" he then turned to Gon. "Isn't she a great sister? Sorry, but as far as I'm concerned, you're in second place."

"Is that so?" he smiled, pointing at Hitomi, who raised an eyebrow at him. "What about her, then?"

"Uh..." he pretended to actually being thinking about it, "... Probably fourth or fifth."

"Well, that's some improvement," Hitomi grinned. "I thought I would be somewhere between the eleventh and twentieth."

They all laughed, and Hitomi then noticed how much she missed laughing full heartedly between friends. Meanwhile, Gon took a step ahead looking at his friends over his shoulder.

"Kite said that no matter where we go, we'll be always be friends!" he smiled.

"Yeah!" Killua grinned.

"You bet it," Hitomi nodded.

And like that, Gon walked away.

Hitomi and Killua sat on a bench, waiting for Alluka who had suddenly said that she wanted to go to the bathroom, _alone._ No matter how much Hitomi insisted to go with her, she refused saying that she could take care of herself.

The girl looked at her watch and released a long sigh, standing up.

"I should be going," Hitomi mumbled. "Who knows how much time Kurapika can endure before doing something crazy on his own..."

"I see..."

Hesitantly, she took a step ahead but stopped when Killua grabbed her wrist all of sudden, probably without even thinking. She looked at him over her shoulder and he let go instantly, a little surprised at his own actions.

They both fell in a deep silence.

"Are you really going to go this time?" he mumbled.

"Yeah," she replied. "Looks like the third is the charm, after all..."

Hitomi knew that she had to walk away now, but she just couldn't. She remembered again and again what Kurapika had said to her, about confessing. The girl also knew that she had to say it, but she didn't want it to sound cheesy. She didn't want to sound like she didn't care either. Also, she didn't want to-!

Ugh, that was both frustrating and embarrassing.

"Hitomi?" Killua was confused. He sweatdropped. "Will you keep standing and shaking there or-?"

"Killua," she called, taking him off guard. "I... _I_..."

Great, now she was making it sound like another cliché shojo manga, but she couldn't help it. The words just died down her throat, forming a lump which didn't let her talk.

Killua kept waiting. She took a few breaths, before talking.

"I should thank you. Long time ago, I just thought love was some kind of psychological disorder," she turned around and smiled, her face burning. "Until I met you, that's it."

The boy's blue orbs grew larger and larger, a faint blush covering his face. Hitomi then regretted her decision about saying that and turned around, standing still.

"I mean a friend love! Yeah, that's it!" she nodded at herself. "I should have told Gon this, but I forgot... Okay, see you-!"

"Wait!"

Killua placed his arm in front of her, resting it on the wall. She stopped, looking at him expecting to talk... Such an awkward situation...

"Do you really mean it like... a friend love?" he asked, calmly.

"Well... no..." Hitomi looked away, before releasing a long sigh. "That's it. You know it. My job is done, so... I'm gone now..."

But before she could even leave, Killua looked at her, intensely. Hitomi stared at him, knowing that he was about to say something, which she didn't know about.

"Don't you want my answer?" he asked, softly.

"No really," she admitted. "But I think I need to hear it."

Suddenly, Killua brought his hands on her hair and pulled her closer. When she knew what was happening, he had planted his lips on hers, fitting perfectly. After a long while, the boy tried to split from her, but she reacted first and, placing her hands on his cheeks, she pulled him closer.

But that kiss came into a end, so they reluctantly let go of each other, but kept looking at their eyes for a long time. Hitomi focused in his icy blue orbs and, smiling, realized how happy she was. He felt the same for her...

She thought she could die happily now.

Hitomi then scratched it out. It sounded like something a fangirl would do, after all.

Smiling from far away, Alluka smiled to herself. She definitely knew that something was up between her brother and his 'friend', but they still needed a friendly push to them to admit it to each other, even if that meant leaving them all alone for a while.

When she noticed that all that scene was over, she decided to walk to them. She grinned at herself, looking at the teens' blushed, but happy faces.

"Well, I definitely need to go now," Hitomi said. "Take care, guys."

"You too, Big sister," Alluka smiled at her. "Thank you for everything!"

"I think that goes for you, too," the girl grinned. "You and Nanika saved Gon and Kurapika's life! Man, even mine!"

Alluka laughed shyly, before both girls noticed Killua shifting uncomfortably. He gazed at the floor, red like a tomato, placing his hands on his pockets.

"Hey, Hitomi," he mumbled, feeling every time more embarrassed. "If it doesn't bother you... if we happen to be close... Can we met?..."

"But we are going to met already in September, remember?"

The youngest Zoldyck laughed as Killua blushed even more.

"He doesn't mean it in that way," she spoke. "He wants a date."

"EH?! No, that isn't it!" he yelled angrily, turning at Hitomi, pointing at her with an accusatory finger. "Don't even go there! I wasn't thinking on taking you on a date at all! I just want to meet! I... I-!"

Hitomi snickered at him. Somehow, he looked really cute when he was that shy.

"I'll be waiting for our date, Killua," she smiled, warmly, waving her hand at him. "Until then."

When the boy calmed down, he gave her a sweet smile as well. They said their goodbye at each other once again, before Hitomi finally turned around and walked away, because she knew that if she didn't do that now, she would never be able to do so.

"You're late, Hitomi," Kurapika stood up from his seat.

"Well, well, my bad," she apologized, placing her hands behind her head. "I just had to deal with some matters..."

Taking the bag that she had left with her brother and throwing it over her shoulder, as she looked at the way she had just walked through, right after leaving her friends.

"Will you miss them?" Kurapika asked her.

"Uh-huh..." she replied, absentmindedly.

"Will you miss _him?"_

"Uh-huh..." there was a beat, until she faced him, pink tinting her cheeks. "Hey! What are you making me say, idiot?!"

Kurapika smiled. "Sorry, sorry... So, did anything good happen?"

"Nothing at all," she frowned. "Why?"

He chuckled at her expression and walked some steps ahead. Hitomi pouted, folding her arms in front of her chest as she felt the heat blossoming in her face, walking right behind him.

"You know that our eyes shift into scarlet when feeling intense emotions, right?" Kurapika stated, calmly.

"Yeah," she raised an eyebrow at him. "I'm a Kuruta, remember? Of course I know."

"And that happiness can count as an intense emotion?"

"I'm not an idiot, damn it! What do you mean with that?"

Kurapika stopped to turn around, smiling at her. "In this very moment, your eyes are burning scarlet, Hitomi."

Her eyes opened for a brief moment, before releasing a long sigh, feeling somewhat tired about it all of sudden. Sometimes, Hitomi hated these eyes a lot, because they kind of made her feelings that transparent.

But then smiled. She was too happy now to be angry over a small fact like that.

"Right, you win," she admitted after a bit. "Happy now?"

"Very," he smirked.

The girl rolled her eyes, before grinning at her brother. She started to walk once again, being followed by Kurapika, of course. She looked at the sky one more time.

Hitomi was a Kuruta, and her eyes were a clear fact to prove it. However, the fact that they turned scarlet was probably the only thing that it was unusual in a human.

In the end, Hitomi was just Hitomi, a normal girl. A girl who fought hard against life, found friends, laughed and fell in love with someone. A girl who was still young, and had a long road still ahead for her to walk through.

Life wasn't over, after all.

 **The End**

* * *

Wow, I can't really believe I finished a story, for real! It's kind of sad for me to say that Eyes Burning Scarlet is over... Seriously, I don't know what I'll do without this fic but... Oh, well! That's life... T.T

It's hard to think this will the last time I ever will do this... Reviews!

 **JokeLover123** **:** Honestly, that joke was something it just popped up in my head, so I'm happy you liked it despite it was that poorly elaborated... Same goes with the kiss scene, but that one gave me more trouble while thinking on it... Anyway, thank you for all the reviews and I hope you enjoyed this last chapter as well!

 **SoulXHunter:** Sorry I wasn't able to show her powers more properly, but I'm glad you liked them anyway, same goes with the poor fluff :D Thank you for all reviews you left me and I wish you had fun in this chapter :)

 **Elisablackcat** **:** I'm sorry for the lack of Killua in the ship... Anyway, thank you for the reviews and I hope you liked this update!

 **Kri:** I'm happy you liked it :D Thanks for all the reviews you once write me and I hope you enjoyed the ending!

 **Guest (chapter 36):** Well, he ended up keeping alive from my hands, hahaha! Thanks for the review and I hope you liked this update :D

 **Silent Readers:** Thanks for keeping in there until the end! I hope you enjoyed it :D

Okay, I guessthis is goodbye for now.. so, I'll thank everyone who once followed, favourited, reviewed or just kept reading this fanfic! THANK YOU ALL! You all are the best :D

See you all another time!


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